Amphibious Love
by HumbleMumblingBumble
Summary: Folks say "If you love something, let it go. If it comes back to you, its yours forever." Sounds nice, but it's the second part that scares me "If it doesn't, then it was never meant to be." I just don't know if I can risk losing him. Roxas&Merman!Axel
1. The Discovery

**Author's notes: **Hullo there and thanks for taking the time to read my fic! (or to at least check it out) This is sort of a prologue chapter, admittedly it's more of a scene-setting, but bear with me because I promise plenty of excitement next. (and no more italics then lol)

**Amphibious Love**

**Rating: **M for language right now, but for different reasons later. *wink wink*  
**Main Pairing: **RokuAku  
**Side Pairings: **Zemyx, NamiRiku, SoKai, PenLette. Also one-sided RikuRoku, one-sided MarAku, and slight SaiAku later on.

So without further ado, ENJOY!

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_Shortly after midnight on a small island named Selkie, one of many making up the large Destiny archipelago, two teenage boys could be found hiking along the __isle's sole highway._

_Complete polar opposites, the only thing the mismatched pair had in common was a chemistry class on the chain's lone high school. One was a seventeen year old, blonde junior of diminutive height, complete with blue eyes capable of burning holes into any unfortunate soul foolhardy enough to laugh at said short stature. The exhausted boy trudged onwards wondering why oh why he had ever agreed to accompany a bothersome man whom he considered an annoyingly desperate nerd when he could instead be sleeping comfortably…_

_The desperate nerd in question was Riku Gin, an eighteen year old employee at the local aquarium whose humble dream was to be a world-famous astronaut. In a feeble attempt to resemble his favorite video game character, the older teen had haphazardly bleached his hair a light silver, turning a blind eye to any and all remaining strands of natural brown.  
__Riku had a rather large crush on the smaller boy walking behind him. It was that exact crush that prevented him from hearing the muttered curses or feeling the constant rain of well-aimed pebbles being kicked at him from behind. His endless infatuation refused to wilt despite the many times the boy had turned him down, called him names, slapped him, threw sharp objects capable of serious bodily harm, and mailed him various death threats of disturbing creativity. It wasn't his fault, the boy was just too cute! _

"_Riku!" The irate younger snapped "Are you even listening? I've asked you twice now, what the hell is this 'amazing thing' you want to show me!" The cynicism fell upon deaf ears._

"_Oh?" The absentminded senior had gotten distracted in his daydreams, especially one that involved a certain blonde, himself, melted chocolate, and his favorite action figurine. "Well…" He paused trying to think of something that would impress his love, knowing full well that the truth wouldn't go over smoothly. In fact, the truth would most likely make the testy blonde label him delusional before shoving him onto the highway in front of a speeding car.  
There were no cars this late at night of course, but experience told him that his resourceful crush would find a way to plan around that fact, so he decided that obscurity was the way to go. "It's a surprise." He purred, happy to have finally thought of something making him sound half-way smart._

"_Surprise my ass!" The tetchy blonde fumed. "That's the same dumb answer you gave earlier when I first asked about this 'Super cool thing that I just _had _to go see'!" He made sure to add air quotes when mimicking the elder's previous words, but even this gesture did nothing to permeate Riku's bliss over his mental victory.  
Reduced to venting out his frustration on the innocent rocks underfoot, the shorter of the two trekked angrily onwards as they left the highway to turn onto a smaller, more secluded street. With the only sound being that from the junior's fiery kicks, the heavy silence carried on until an exceptionally large stone met it's early demise with a noisy clatter. Finally taking notice of the distracting sounds, Riku whirled around with a finger at his lips. _

"_Shhhh!" He cautioned in a low voice. "We don't wanna get caught."_

"_Caught! Caught doing what?" The teen's voice began to raise in pitch and volume as his anxiety increased. "I swear to God, if you've brought me out to do something illegal, I'll-"_

"_No! No!" Recognizing the warning signs, the silver-haired male frantically interrupted. "It's uhh…not bad! Not at all!" Hesitant to reveal the truth, he simply finished with a beaming smile in hopes that it'd work magic and calm the other.  
__He failed._

"_Then why the fuck are you whispering!" The younger shouted aggravatingly, beginning to stand straighter and ball his fists. _

"_Err…" At a complete loss of words, Riku just stared at the fired up boy fuming in front of him as if the answer would suddenly materialize. "Come on Brain!" He silently berated himself. "Think! Think of something a smart person would think of!".  
__Assuming that the senior's brain had gone 'bye bye' and melted out of his silver-haired head, the annoyed blonde was two seconds away from storming back home in a huff when the elder finally cleared his jumbled thoughts to exclaim. "The curfew!" The smug admirer glowed with pride for thinking of something so clever, but received nothing more than a clueless blink in return for his hard work. _

"…_What?" _

_Riku puffed up his chest. "The town's curfew! Kids our age aren't allowed out after eleven! However - " He cleared his throat and smoothed his treated hair back in what he must have imagined was a suave sort of way. "I have decided to brave the consequences for you my sweet! I believe you're more than worth it!" He coyly batted his eyes, hoping that the blonde was deeply impressed by the lengths he was willing to go to flatter him. So impressed, that he'd sigh "Oh Riku, you're sooo manly" and they'd make out under the moonlight.  
__No such luck for him though. The only answer he received from his skeptical classmate was a disbelieving huff._

"_Yeah, uh-huh. You do know that you're probably the only person on the whole Destiny chain who actually _cares_ about that rule, right?" Riku quickly found himself deflating like a porcupine's air mattress.  
But his luck was quick to turn around after his curious companion inquired once more. "So where is this 'special thing' thingie anyways? You can at least tell me that." Riku internally debated whether he should inform the other, not wishing to spoil the surprise, but as if reading his mind the impatient junior took it upon himself to swiftly end the contemplation with an unvoiced threat. "You _will_ tell me, right?" Seeing no other choice, the alarmed senior plastered a nervous smile upon his face._

"_Yeah! Of course!" A short silence reigned until the annoyed arching of a golden eyebrow reminded the elder what he was really supposed to say. "It's at…uhh…Tako's." _'_Tako's' was local slang, short for "Tako's Ocean Institute & Aquarium". Being the undersized island's only tourist attraction, any local resident had been there at least a dozen times. It was popular because of it's family atmosphere, café, marine mammal shows, and tanks full of exotic, colorful fish.  
__The blonde hated it.  
__He'd been dragged there no less than seven times by his parents, countless times with his friends who also forced him to volunteer there every summer, and whenever he tried his hand at the dating scene, they all wanted to get tacos at Tako's! _

"_What. The. Hell!" In his rage, the seething blonde felt like tearing out his hair.  
No, scratch that - Riku's hair. He'd be doing the world a favor. "You're keeping me up past midnight to see some…some dumb fish?" __To say he was unhappy would be a massive understatement. The senior__ had tricked him into going there before on a "date" in an effort to impress him with his knowledge of ichthyology. To say that it had gone poorly would be another gargantuan understatement. The hapless admirer ended up tripped on the floor and was ditched just a mere five minutes in, left to go home alone and rid his grey locks of the smoothie drink which had been upturned by the moody object of his affection._

_Even though the torture of listening to his silver-haired stalker prattle on was cut short and wasn't as bad as it could of been, the seventeen year old still wasn't looking forward to a repeat of losing what he called 'Ten minutes of my valuable life that I'll never get back'._

"_No, no!" Riku said in a panicked voice, forgetting the need to keep a hushed tone. "It's not a fish, it's a…a…uhhhh ummmm" He struggled to think of a way to describe it without giving away the real surprise. "It's an amazing, world changing discovery!" He grinned to nobody in particular, pleased with himself for being able to come up with so many smart replies in one night._

"_Great." The unimpressed blonde scoffed. "They found another new species of guppy."_

_An excited giggle "Even better!"  
Seeing that his classmate's grin refused to falter, the junior slumped and dully huffed in resignation. _"_Sounds thrilling."  
Failing as always to notice the uninterested tone, the elated elder spun back around to cheerfully skip toward their destination, his defeated escort in tow. After a few minutes of the awkward trip, he proudly exclaimed "Here we are!" upon seeing the imposing, navy arches of the Ocean Institute come into view._

"_Oh goodie." Was the drawling, sarcastic reply that he received, but Riku wasn't the least bit put off by the lack of enthusiasm. He knew that soon the small blonde would be gaping in awe and begging to know more once he laid eyes on their newest aquarium addition. And he had even more daydreams imagining how grateful the boy would be for showing him such an exclusive thing, how he'd want to express his thanks in a 'special way'…  
While the dirty movie in his mind continued to play, Riku struggled with his set of decorated keys. Briefly putting his inner film on pause, he managed to unlock one of the large, glass doors before his content smile returned and he went back to softly sighing at his own perverted fantasies._

"Ah-hem!" _The object of his desire knocked him into reality with a venomous glare. "Hey twisted grinning guy! I don't even want to know what kind of sick thoughts you have swirling around in that grey-" _

"_Silver!" Riku interjected. "It's a beautiful shade of shimmering silver, not grey!"  
__At this he received a deadpan stare so cold and icy that he was reminded of all the wasted air-conditioning he was letting out by keeping the door open in that manner. _"…_Oh, right! After you, my sweet!" He accompanied his syrupy voice with a low bow and grand sweeping arm gesture, in response getting his __shin kicked and the door slammed in his face shortly after while he was hopping around doing his 'pain dance'._

_Once inside, the shorter of the two glanced around the lobby, taking the chance to cherish what he knew was going to be one of the few Riku-free moments he'd have all night. It wasn't just the missing Riku that was atypical though, the silent building seemed completely devoid of all other people and was almost unrecognizable with it's lights off. The faux whale skeleton hanging from the ceiling above no longer installed awe in the teen, but chills up his spine instead. The fact that Tako's was constantly kept at a steady sixty-five degrees didn't help any.  
__He suddenly wished that he could just humor Riku to stop his whining, see this thing, and go home. He didn't want to spend any more time than needed in this creepy place. _

_The haunting stillness came to an abrupt end when Riku came crashing through the double doors still gasping in agony. Rather than sympathy, the abrasive junior addressed his entrance with "Come on you pussy, are you going to show me this thing or what?" _

_Riku sniffed, nose still sore from being introduced to the swinging pane of glass. "What's the hurry?" He then perked up a second later to answer his own question. "Oooh! I know! You're excited now, huh?" His grin threatened to split his face in half, reddened nose and all. "Don't worry, you won't be disappointed!"_

_The misjudged underclassman simply raked his fingers through his straw spikes, a nervous habit, and murmured "Yeah, that's right. Whatever. Let's just go…" Riku was all too happy to oblige and marched forward, practically strutting. To his great pleasure, the blonde was sticking closer to him this time, even if not for the reasons he thought._

_With many winding corridors to go through and eerie tanks to pass, their trip through the aquarium appeared longer than the one it took to get there in the first place. Most fish were tucked away for the night and even though their empty enclosures added to the uncomfortable graveyard feeling in the air, the junior still preferred those over the ones holding the eternally-grinning, nocturnal sharks.  
__Apparently attempting to one-up the sharks in nastiness, a bioluminescent viperfish snapped at them through the glass as they walked through the deep-sea exhibit. Caught unaware, the jumpy blonde instinctively grabbed the other's sleeve with a yelp. _

_Always an optimist, Riku readily misunderstood the action and assumed his buddy was showing some appreciation for the trip. _"_Awww, that's so sweet!" Tiny, cartoon hearts were practically floating out of his head. "You're welcome! If I knew you'd like it this much, I'd of taken you sooner!" His classmate reeled back as if burned and sputtered indignantly. _

"_Like it? That ugly little demon-fish would've eaten us if it weren't for the glass! See!" He pointed frantically, but had to deflate after seeing the spot the 'demon' used to be in was now occupied by a fat, bored-looking anglerfish. The senior student leaned forward to squint at the tiny, blobby creature before deciding to play along. _

"_Yeah, I guess they're kinda spooky. It scared the crap out of me in Finding Nemo." Knowing that it was impossible to get anything through his accompaniment's thick-headed skull, the ruffled junior skipped attempts of an explanation in exchange for some deep breaths and continued on in silence.  
__Yet after several, teeth-grinding minutes of tolerating Riku's incessant humming echoing off the walls, he finally had to take the bait and admit that even discussion with the man would be better than _that_. _

"_So, aren't there like… cameras and guards in this place?" To emphasize his point, he jabbed a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of one of the wall-mounted recording devices. _

"_Huh? Oh yeah, that's right." Riku seemed unfazed. "But the night guards are all playing strip poker right now."_

_If the younger had liquid in his mouth then, it would have been sprayed all over the carpet in shock. Instead he could only start a coughing fit, which naturally prompted the other to assist by massaging his back. His low, _lower_ back. No lungs down there.  
After his offending hand was viciously slapped away, Riku offered an explanation in hopes of patching things up. _"_Luxord roped them all into playing so that Lexaeus would be distracted. And Xigbar said it's okay if I show just you, because they've already snuck into see it and he doesn't want me to tattle on them." He seemed pleased at this, his hand especially felt invigorated, but the slowly recovering underclassman was having a hard time wrapping his head around the whole situation._

"_Wait…So, they're _all_ here?" He knew from his time as a volunteer that Tako's only employed two guards during the night at maximum. After all, only one's needed to monitor the cameras and the small, quiet island had shown over the decades to be decidedly lacking in eccentric fish-thieves. _

"_Mm-hmm." Riku nodded. "Them and some other newly-hired dudes. Ever since this special thing arrived, security's been tripled!" _

_The blonde gaped. "What?"_

"_But don't worry," Riku was quick to soothe. "They've promised to turn a blind eye and besides - now the cameras have been fixed so that they only show live and don't actually record nothing." Before the blue-eyed boy could formulate a response, they arrived at one of the 'Staff Only' doors and the senior began fiddling with his gawky keychain once more. He was very proud of his brain for thinking up a clever system of key identification based on stickers; unfortunately for him, that same brain often forgot which marked which. _

"_Is it this one?" The blonde pointed, guess based on a fish logo decoration. It seemed logical to him, having a fish represent a place full of them.  
__Too bad 'logic' wasn't in Riku's vocabulary._

"_No, no. That's my car keys." He returned to his search while the other face-palm'd and grumbled under his breath about idiots and what he wished he could do to them if only they weren't still considered 'people' in the eyes of the law... "Here it is!" Riku triumphantly held up a black key with a gaudy, pink Hello Kitty sticker taped messily around it.  
__Hello Kitty. _Figures. _Palm met face yet again._

"_Geez Riku, really…?"_

_His oblivious companion blinked innocently. "What?" _

"…_Nothing, it's nothing." As the unlocked door swung open, the blonde chose to drop the matter and instead pursue their previous conversation. "So why have the cameras been changed?"  
__Speaking over his shoulder, Riku continued down the staff corridor leading behind the display tanks. "It's this new thing they've got, they don't want anyone to leak to the press or anything because they want to be sure the government can't take it away from them first. So they made it so that no proof can be taken of it's existence! Or at least, they try. Security isn't even allowed cell phones and we've all had to sign non-disclosure contracts."_

_The younger snorted. "Yeah and that seems to have worked real well with you." The silver-haired teen took that as a compliment and they both snickered as they padded on.  
__But the chuckles came to a stop when, after what seemed like an eternity, they reached a door in the Staff Only hallway that was covered in warnings and threats of life in prison should an unauthorized someone break in._

_Blue eyes widened at the unfamiliar signs and disclaimers. "Erm, Riku? Are you an… 'authorized personnel'?" he asked, quoting the signs.  
__At this he got a snort. "Hell no! The only folks allowed to go inside here are those weird scientists and the owner. They don't seem to trust nobody else, not even the guards!" As an afterthought, he mused "So, I suppose only a handful know what's in it." _

_This put him on the receiving end of a suspicious glare. "Then how do you know? And come to think of it, why would you have to sign papers forbidding you from talking about what you're not even supposed to know in the first place!"_

"_Gee, feisty thing aren't you?" Riku smirked, only to get quelled by a fist being cocked back in his direction. He rushed to explain before the blonde broke his face. For the sixth time.  
_"_The papers are just so we don't talk about the new, scary door!" The shorter youth stilled, listening as the other went on. "But that only makes people more curious you know! So Xigbar got one of the higher-ups drunk and told me later what he'd blabbed." _

"_Oh?" The danger was gone now, the junior relaxed and truly seemed interested for the first time, prompting the encouraged senior to explain further._

"_Yeah, I didn't believe what he'd said at first, I thought he was just drunk-talkin'. But then the rumors started…"_

"_Rumors?"_

"_Yeah," Suddenly he got a mischievous look on his face, hoping to frighten the boy and maybe get some more comfort-cuddling in. "People say they found a sea monster and were keeping it in the underground tank!"_

"_Pffftt! Sea monster!" The younger couldn't help but shake his head in disbelief. "Yeah right, I'm so sure." Cerulean eyes rolled sardonically. "When has that pathetic 'frighten crush to provide solace' thing ever worked?"  
Riku choked, not expecting to be seen through so easily, but still pleaded his tale. "Honest - it is a monster!" Sobering, his face abruptly turned grim. "Or at least it's pretty close."_

_His grave allegation was nonchalantly waved off by the other.  
_"_It's a _fish_ Riku. They're all ugly, so they all look like monsters." _

_Even as he said it, the student prepared to endure a long rant from his companion on the true beauty of fish and how _some people _were just too blind to see it. He'd heard that well-rehearsed tirade being given out several times before and was already bracing himself for the dull monologue that he felt was sure to follow.  
__Instead he simply received a disgruntled, searching look before the upperclassman turned determinedly to start opening the door._

_The thought and precautions put into protecting whatever it was they were guarding amazed the junior and he couldn't help but start to believe that there might actually be something down there worth Riku's hype. Even 'world-changing' seemed within the realm of possibility now.  
__- There was a slot for sliding ID cards and two separate keyholes; On top of that, a six digit numeral code had to be entered, then a password, another longer password, and finally a scanner that identified a second keycard Riku showed it._

_The blonde tried to jest in order to shake off the feeling of uneasiness that had settled over them during the process. _"_What, that's it? No fingerprint or iris scanner? No voice testing? Can't be all that special then."_

_The joke flew right over Riku's head though and he took it literally. "Well they wanted to get all that, but this is a low-budget place you know." He brightened. "But when they reveal this baby, they'll have enough cash to buy all the security in the world! I can see it getting more protection than the US president. Or even a famous pop singer!" He nodded and then said more to himself than anyone else, "I hope I'll still be working here then." _

_The hesitant junior chewed his lower lip out of anxiety as the door clicked open; the institute was obviously trying very hard to keep this thing a secret and he really didn't need to get in any serious trouble right now. _

"_Riku, are you sure that-" He was cut off by a blast of surprisingly warm air billowing from the entrance, the temperature contrast with the rest of the frigid building was paralyzing.  
__The door opened to reveal sinking, metal steps and as he robotically followed his enthusiastic obsessor down, the blonde couldn't help but wish he had never allowed Riku to drag him here. He would have been content to view the unveiling of this "discovery" on television with the rest of the world.  
__The spiral steps finally leveled off, but they were both blind in the darkness._

"_Hold on a sec…" There was some shuffling as Riku fumbled around for a light switch. When they finally flared to life, the glare was so sharp that their eyes ached. Squinting, they could make out being in a spacious, high-ceilinged room made up of dull whitewashed walls and a slippery concrete floor. The light revealed that it was an amphitheatre of sorts, with five desk "terraces" curving around in a halfmoon shape. It appeared to be designed in order to best view the front wall, which as far as either of them could see was a solid glossy black.  
__Eyes adjusted, Riku proceeded to march in front of the raised platforms and was delighted to hear the younger follow closely. Once they reached the dark facade, the blonde couldn't help but voice a question. _

"_So is this just used for projections or something?"_

_It took the elder a while to understand what the boy was implying. _"_Oh no, no, no. See this isn't a wall, it's glass." _

_The younger blinked "What do you-"_

"_Glass see, just really thick glass. It's hard to tell with the inner lights being off, but it's only a big tank." To demonstrate, he rapped his knuckles against the surface producing a light, tinking sound.  
__Not even a second passed following the gentle tapping before a huge, booming crash reverberated from the barrier throughout the room! The bashed glass seemed to vibrate with the impact as the rattle echoed throughout like thunder!_

"_Arrrgh!" Both boys howled with fear and leapt back, or in the junior's case, stumbled back. Rooted in shock, they could only tremble in place until finally -  
"Oh…Ahahahaha!" The batty employee exploded with laughter. "Heh, That… It really got me good!"_

"_What the hell! Did you finally crack or something Sicko?" The question had come from the floor, where the younger boy had fallen in his initial fright._

"_Hee hee, I'm sorry man," Riku sniggered while wiping away a tear. "It's just kinda funny, see-"_

"_NO, IT WASN'T!"  
__The flustered shout simply renewed the senior's cackles as he offered his companion a hand to help him up. The extremity received a rough slap in response and the blonde stood without assistance while the bruised other tried to reassure him._

"_I'm just saying that there isn't anything to be afraid of, the noise was from the creature. The lights must have woken him up and my tapping made him mad. But don't worry, the glass is super-thick, he can't even crack it! Remember, this used to be where they'd rehabilitate belugas and stuff before they went on display!" __The silence that greeted him was deafening after all of the commotion, but the gaping blonde just stood there inwardly going through all the marine animals he knew to be strong enough for that kind of feat.  
_"_You know, you kinda look like a goosefish gasping like that and all…" In his attempt at breaking the room's tension, the senior simply said the first thing to pop into his head. He immediately cringed, but surprisingly enough his plan worked and his friend snapped back to reality. _

"_What the hell is a goosefish?" _

"_Something that you sometimes look like." Riku silently prayed that he would never look it up and see a picture of one. For his own safety.  
__Fortunately for him, the boy had bigger things on his mind at that moment._

"_Was that some kind of killer whale?" His conclusion was dismissed by the other with a casual wave._

"_Nope, not even close Roxsmyboxers." The smug elder strode away, foreseeing the inevitable blow-up._

"_What did you just call me!" If Riku's face had been in reaching distance, it would have been horribly mangled beyond all recognition. Unfortunately he had already skipped across to the far side of the tank, so his looks were spared the improvement._

"_Nothing, nothing at all!" He flashed his best 'I am totally not a rapist' smile before turning to pause in front of a switch covered panel, oblivious to the furious cursings of the room's other occupant. While he flipped through his keys again looking for the correct one needed to activate the dials, his grumbling partner began to interrogate._

"_Hmph! You're awful cocky tonight, what on earth are you taking?" After a suspicious once-over, he added with disgust dripping off every word "Are you drunk?" _

_Riku sputtered, tripping over his explanation in his haste to clear his guilt. "No! No! No way! I would never! Especially not on an important night like this with you!" Still dubious, the dry blonde speculated once more as the control panel clicked to life._

"_Full moon then?"_

"_I'm just so excited!" Convinced that the smaller student's opinion on him would be forced to change soon, the senior's smile was bright enough to set the whole place ablaze, thousands of gallons of water and all. "I know you're gonna love it!" For the moment though, the unimpressed skeptic still had a firm scowl set in place. _

"_Yeah, yeah. So is that the light for the tank? You gonna flip it or not?" The glee-choked senior could only offer a small giggle in response, prompting his suffering companion to heave a giant sigh and start to march over, intent on doing it himself and getting the whole thing over with as quickly as possible. As soon as he had taken his first steps in front of the glass however, Riku's brain sputtered back and, eager to please, he smacked one of the horizontal switches to the right, illuminating the tank in a shocking flash.  
__In sharp contrast to the inky darkness of before, the bare enclosure was now full of clear, crystalline water; the floor was a dark blue and the walls were a blaring white, blinding under the harsh lights._

_But this hardly registered in either of their minds, for both were too focused on the large, powerful creature angrily circling near the top of the tank._

_To be continued…_

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**Author's notes: **Yay me for my attempt at fanfiction! Since this is my first story, I know I probably messed up a lot, I just don't know how! So it's your job to (pretty please) point out any spelling/grammar mistakes and other ways that you think I might be able to improve my writing! Thank you all very much in advance!

But of course I want to know your opinion on the story too! Like it? Love it? Hate it?  
LET ME KNOW! REVIEWS ARE AN AUTHOR'S BEST FRIEND! *hugs you all*

By the by~ I think we all know who the short blonde is in the story, but I'm keeping his name a secret for the first chapter. Same thing for the "creature". lol

_Tune in later for the next chapter to see Blondie's reaction and the truth about the 'sea-beast'!_


	2. The Meeting

**Author's notes:**

I wanna give a big Thanks to all my reviewers on the first chapter! Pen, iluvtoady, Forever-Waiting-Here, Spittfyre, and Jaike Kyr! And to all the people who favorited or alerted this story also. Thank you all for the encouragement! You all get virtual brownies. (I'm all out of cookies)

And now, you don't have to worry about that cliffhanger anymore. lol

ENJOY!

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Surprisingly, the younger didn't suck all of the air out of the room with an enormous gasp like the hysteric patrons before him had. His face simply went slack with shock and his jaw hung uselessly. While in mute awe, his mouth struggled to form words he wasn't even aware he was trying to make. "Buh, wha…?"

Because there, rapidly circling several feet above the pair while shooting them both a fierce, frightening glare was a beast said to only exist in myths and folklore. With the lower half of a fish and torso of a human, it was unmistakably a mermaid.

"It can't be…." The spell that the creature had cast over the overwhelmed youth, broke just long enough for him to form that short sentence.

"But it is!" Riku declared boldly. He went to stand next to his shell-shocked crush in front of the illuminated tank and pointed up at the furious half-human slicing powerfully through the water. "Amazing, isn't it? The first one ever encountered and caught! Actual proof that the old sailors weren't crazy after all! A live mermaid!" He vigorous rubbed his palms together with glee, pleased that he was finally able to awe the boy. In his mind, next comes love, then comes marriage, then comes….wait.

Still unaware of the elder's internal monologue, the blonde was having trouble comprehending the last word that the Riku had proudly spoke.

"Mermaid…" The blonde echoed him weakly. "Impossible." He was beginning to feel a bit faint.

Sensing the younger's breakdown, Riku was quick to correct

"Mer_man_, actually, this one is male." Upon receiving no acknowledgement from the boy, he tried again "See, no boobies."

The younger gaped, taken aback and came out of his daze "Did you just-" but Riku interrupted.

"Don't have a fit now! Male fish are more colorful anyways" He gave a chagrined shrug "and this one certainly has flare, he's like a sea-peacock!" There was no denying that, every little thing about the beast seemed flashy, from his billowing fan of a tail to his multiple striped fins.

The blonde nodded in agreement "Yeah, he's certainly…Wow!" He had recovered from the initial astonishment and now that the reality hit like ton of bricks, he found himself full of curiosity and questions. "Can he speak?"

Riku scoffed, still slightly crushed that the love of his life had expressed adoration over a fish instead of his own awesome visage

"No, _it_ cannot speak, nor does it show any signs of being as intelligent as the tales say." He pulled himself up to full height, sniffed scornfully, and continued in a haughty tone "I have to admit I was disappointed when I found out. Before, I was amazed and hoped to learn about advanced civilizations and underwater cities, but he's really just about as smart as a dog."

"That's it?" the younger couldn't believe it. "No way! You're just being snooty!" Riku sputtered as he went on " He has to be smarter than that, I mean…just look at him!" He strode forward to the glass and rested a palm flat against the cool surface. "He's gorgeous!" Riku released a gasp that was marred with a breathless, feminine shriek and clutched wildly at handfuls of grey hair.

'No! You're just….in shock…over the creature. Yes, yes!" He began a pitiful fit of self-directed, inaudible mutterings that went completely unnoticed by the other, who was too focused on the creature which had finally halted his incessant circling. Instead, he simply hung still and suspended casually, as if in proud display of his incalculable beauty and power while giving them both a stern, fixed stare. The blonde took this moment to carefully inspect the merman, who was currently floating with no apparent effort.

His long, slowly swishing tail was a deep, dark burgundy with scales so tiny and uniform that they couldn't be seen without close examination, but his abundant, paper-thin fins were a lighter crimson, the color of blood. The luxuriant, scarlet fins were also marked with shocking purple stripes.

The blonde continued to gaze with silent wonder at him and noted that unlike the ones he had seen in movies, the fish half didn't abruptly cut off into a human, but rather, the two halves blended together with the scales continuing alongside the dorsal fin on his back until just beneath his shoulder blades. Despite this, the front of his chest, devoid of any blemishes, was clearly human, with pale mammalian skin so white that it shone and framing his face appeared to be bright red hair, a floating crest of ruby that slightly resembled a halo.

Upon realizing this, the bewildered boy turned slightly to the incapacitated senior while keeping his gaze at the tank and wondered out loud,

"How can a fish have hair?"

All the quivering and mumbling ceased at once, the elder springing up in a flash, eager to prove his worth in round two of 'Blondie Seduction: Riku vs. The Fish'.

"It couldn't," Riku interjected boastfully, "No hair is that color anyways. They're actually gill filaments that it uses to gain more oxygen from the water, it's just human mimicry." He internally cheered, _take that fish! _At this rate, he felt that his vast knowledge and insight would turn the junior's gaze of admiration upon him and off the creature in two seconds flat.

He was mistaken.

"Yeah, or maybe we could be the ones doing the mimicry, who knows? It's so much nicer than any hair that I've ever seen… it's a shame humans can't have unique colors like that naturally because it's pretty awesome!" Once again, the silver-haired male was struck down where he stood. Current score: Fish: 2 Riku: 0

"Nice, unique colors? Well maybe if you haven't looked RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU!" He struck an impressive, manly pose and jabbed a finger at his silver locks.

"I said _natural_, nice hair Riku, not…" There were many adjectives that came to mind when faced with the challenge of describing that grey mop, but he wasn't in the mood to listen to the blubbering and whining that would surely follow, so he simply settled on "artificial". At this, Riku faced away indignantly and firmly crossed his arms.

"Fine then! I won't tell you anymore about the merman!"

Now normally, the blonde would just scoff, refuse to acknowledge Riku or his childish games, and actually enjoy the rare moment of silence. However, this time was different, this time Riku actually had something that he yearned for.

"Riku," he took a deep breath and gritted his teeth, struggling to keep his tone neutral "Riku I'm sorry, you can continue."

"No, no! I'm sure you wouldn't want to have to listen to someone with _artificial hair_!" Riku taunted stubbornly. He was intent on not to giving in, but that was just fine with the blonde, who was even more so determined to get his own way.

It was time to use his _secret weapon_!

"Riku…" He clutched the front of the senior's jacket and leaned in close while batting wide, cobalt eyes "please!" Riku had the misfortune to glance down at the exaggerated display and was immediately spellbound, mesmerized by the adorable blonde clinging to him so desperately. The flabbergasted boy began to trip over his words, eager to comply

"It's nocturnal, it's blood type is O positive, it can breathe just fine out of water, it's carnivorous with shark-like, replaceable teeth, it's dorsal spines are slightly venomous, it has night vision, it was found beached in the Maritime Nature Preserve, it-" he ran out of air and began gasping for breath.

While he gulped hungrily at the air, the younger blinked and reveled in all of his newfound knowledge. However, the last fact unsettled him slightly "Wait, it was found _here_?" The nature preserve was really just some of Tako's property out back, a meager strip of protected beach that was roped off and inaccessible to the public.

"Yup," Riku nodded boastfully "it was flopping around onshore." The younger frowned doubtfully at that, he couldn't help but feel that it was unlikely that the merman had just swam up on that undersized beach, it was too convenient. However, he could see why they'd want to claim so, if it really had washed up on their property, then it would be theirs and it would be even harder for the government to take it away from them.

The elder seemed to sense his disbelief and after a moment asked in a despondent tone,

"You don't believe me…?" The downcast look on his face was so pathetic that the blonde felt obligated to reassure him.

"No, no! It's just-" He took the moment to inquire about another anomaly "why was he beached to began with? Was he sick or hurt? Was it after storm?"

"Excellent question!" Riku praised, ecstatic that the junior didn't truly think him a liar. "and the answer is-" he paused dramatically "nobody knows!"

"What?"

"No, really! It was perfectly healthy, uninjured, and we haven't had a storm in months! It even tried to run away and put up a good fight with the guards. They thought it was just some teenager playing a prank and sneaking into private property at first…" He trailed off in thought "Actually, when they realized the truth, they were really worried that the merman had been hurt during capture, because it had a panic-attack or something and fainted dead away!"

The blonde gawked and mentally cursed those brutish scientists who had callously kidnapped the redhead. Did they even try to speak to him first? He shot the wary merman, still floating lazily, an apologetic glance.

"He wasn't _really_ hurt though, right?"

Riku missed the concern in his voice. "Not at all, he's very valuable, you know! They'd get a lot less money and discoveries out of a corpse." He then purposely overlooked the wicked death-glare directed his way and instead focused on his aged shoelaces. Fascinating things.

"Well, I'm glad they take such good care of him then." The younger sneered. He flipped some golden hair out of his face and huffed slightly. "Since he's so important, he has to have a name, right?"

Riku sighed "No, _it_ doesn't. Everyone just calls it The Creature and the scientists refer to it as The Subject or Specimen." he continued with some scorn "I think it should get a _proper_ name!"

The blonde stared into the redhead's calculating, jade eyes and thought to himself that he probably had a name, but simply didn't want to or couldn't tell them what it was.

"Yeah, a name would be nice to know." He softly agreed.

"Alrighty then! Let's give it one!" Riku did a spirited happy-dance and thought hard "Well…since it's all red, how about Scarlet?" he personally thought it was a beautiful name.

Too bad the blonde didn't share the same sentiment.

"No, that's a girl's name!" He stomped in annoyance.

"Rose?" Riku tried again.

Face was introduced to palm for the third time that night "Even more feminine!"

"Lobster!" Riku practically shouted, he was sure that he'd hit a homerun with that one.

"…..I'm not even going to dignify that with a response." the blonde spat viciously.

"Okay, then… How about Apple?" He hoped that the younger would agree soon, because he was running out of ideas.

However, the other just threw his hands up in exasperation "Would _you_ like to be named after a fruit?"

Riku then turned his attention back to the creature, who, despite the steely, scrutinizing gaze was smiling a bit and seemed quite amused by the whole situation. "You know, I don't think it cares really." Now with fruit on his mind, he tried out some more names. "Banana, Kiwi, Pineapple, Orange-" The irate other quickly cut him off

"He's not orange, he's red!"

Riku blinked "Oh, right….Strawberry, Tomato, Raspberry, Watermelon, Cherry-" he was interrupted again by the object of his affection, now fuming.

"Cherry? Those are all terrible-" he trailed off upon realizing that the once stationary redhead had turned and without breaking eye-contact, gave two short sweeps of his impressive tail and smoothly approached the pair, silent as a shadow.

The blonde stared, enthralled as the merman paused in front of the glass to stare right back at him.

"See," Riku chided "It responds to Cherry!" His boasting words fell on deaf ears however, as the other was too busy marveling at the details that he couldn't see on "Cherry" earlier.

Up close, he could see that his face matched the rest of his flamboyant style, with bright, lime green eyes and twin markings upon each cheek. They were narrow, inverted triangles and the same vibrant shade of purple as the bands found on his fins.

Also he had slowly rippling gills in his neck, deep, bloodless wounds upon the ivory skin. The six slits opened and shut in perfect unison.

Unknown to the distracted blonde, but crystal clear to Riku, the captivated merman was closely inspecting him in return. Inquisitive, green eyes scanned over the other, savoring every feature. The two scrupulously analyzed each other, memorizing everything as if cramming for an important exam.

"A-hem" The forgotten elder cleared his throat, trying in vain to break the silent communication that seemed to be happening between the two. However, after the transfixed blonde refused to acknowledge him, he decided it was time for drastic measures and contemplated other tactics.

There was always plan Osculation, which called for a surprise make-out session. Or maybe plan Grope and Run Away, which was exactly as it's name would suggest. In the end however, he decided that he'd like to be able to leave Tako's tonight on slightly less hostile than normal terms with the blonde and besides, he liked his legs unbroken and wasn't looking forward to the imminent castration that was sure to follow grabbing the blonde against his will. So, he went with the immature but always successful Funny Face tactic.

"Nyah-nyah!" He pulled at his cheeks and stuck his tongue out at the boy, which yet again didn't fail to ignite fury for the 78th time.

The blonde glowered and icily spat "Thanks for ruining the moment asshole!" he started to push up his sleeves, preparing to pummel the other before he could get in a snappy comeback.

Riku, in a panic, hurried to find something alleviate his guilt or distract his crush. Fortunately for him, some movement in the tank granted him the perfect opportunity.

"But Cherry's doing it too!' and to the surprise of both, it was true. The merman was mimicking the Senior's funny face perfectly, complete with crossed eyes.

Riku breathed an internal sigh of relief upon catching sight of the blonde's unreadable expression, he felt that surely now the blonde would redirect his anger toward the dumb fish and so, he nearly had a heart attack when the opposite played out. The normally-serious junior had burst out into laughter before returning the favor, sticking out his tongue and giving himself antlers with waggling fingers.

"Whaaat? How come when Cherry does it, it's funny, but if I try, then you get angry?" The only explanation that the disbelieving senior could conjure up was that whole world had gone crazy and backward.

And the blonde's blunt retort simply confirmed that.

"He's cuter."

Score one for Cherry. Fish:4 Riku:0

After being ruthlessly shot down, Riku dejectedly began to brood and ponder what went wrong. Like all other dates before, this 'perfect night' wasn't turning out quite as planned. Presently, the scrumptious blonde seemed more inclined to bed a fish than him, and that would be a serious blow to _anybody's_ ego.

While the crestfallen Riku sulked and reflected upon earlier failures, the room's other occupants were having an intense facial face-off, taking turns to see who could outdo the other in terms of comicality.

"Hey Cherry," The blonde sucked in his cheeks to make fishy lips and mimicked gills with his hands on his neck. "Do I remind you of someone you know? Friends, maybe?"

The merman scornfully turned up his nose at the display before replying with a nonsensical impression of his own, while the blonde puffed up his cheeks and squished his face against the glass. They had been going back and forth for a while, before the silver-haired teen finally began to perk up and give himself a pep talk.

"He may be cuter, but _I've_ got personality! Brawns! Brains! Gorgeous hair! …and legs, very nice legs." he added as an afterthought. "Let's see Fish-Boy beat that!" He turned around triumphantly to face the others, just in time to see the most abominable, atrocious thing his damaged eyes ever were forced to behold, the worst living nightmare ever!

The mischievous merman in a blithe show of friskiness, had teasingly puckered his lips and with a flourish, pressed them against the area near the blonde's smushed profile in an over exaggerated display. The blonde peeled his face off the glass with peals of laughter at their silly antics, but Riku interrupted with howls of horror.

Because, playful and silly as it was, it was still unmistakably a kiss, and that meant _the fish had kissed the blonde before him!_

"Nooo!' The dramatic senior smacked on the tank wall directly in front of the merman's face, rattling the glass and sending a clamorous bang echoing throughout the cavernous room.

The reaction was instantaneous. The alarmed merman recoiled in shock with a garbled cry, the first evidence of vocalization he'd shown so far, and before either one could blink, he'd turned tail and retreated to the far corner, where he cowered, trembling slightly with his back to them.

"Oh." Riku stared, unseeing, at the petrified figure "Well shit, I didn't mean to-"

"RIKU!" The livid blonde was beside himself with fury. The silver haired male crumbled under his classmate's fiery glare and prepared himself for a scathing tongue-lashing.

However, it seemed that the dating gods finally took pity on the luckless senior for once in his life as a lanky figure appeared in the entrance to prevent his early demise.

"Riku! Git your asses outta there!" For once, Riku was actually please to hear Xigbar's grating voice, "Poker's done and we ain't gonna cover for ya no more!"

"Uhh…" the blonde's threatening expression was making it hard to gather his wits "just a minute please!" The senior's voice wavered under the caustic glower being burned into him.

"Fuck no! Ya said ya needed a few minutes to show 'im, not hours! I'll drag ya out if I have tuh!" He stomped in annoyance and shook a fist. "Lexaeus's gonna make ya both into fish food if 'e finds out! Now git over here!"

Riku, eager to escape the other's wrath, scrambled to the door to negotiate. "Be right back!"

The younger continued shooting dirty looks at his back until he disappeared from view, before sitting down on the concrete floor and refocusing on the panic-stricken merman. Seemingly distressed that there was no place to hide in the bare tank, the terrified redhead had curled into a tight ball on the tank floor, his long, flexible tail being more than enough to cover himself completely, save a slight tuft of rosy hair.

Even though he knew it was all Riku's doing, looking at the frightened and forlorn creature made his stomach feel full of lead.

"Cherry, I'm sorry…" He released a guilt-ridden sigh. Upon hearing the self-condemning sound, the merman popped his head out from between the coils to warily watch him. The blonde blinked in surprise, but felt encouraged by the redhead's light attempt at reconciling. He decided to try and coax the other back, hoping to re-establish their earlier trust.

"It's okay now, Riku's gone and you don't have to be afraid anymore." The merman peered around anxiously, as if verifying what he said as true. "He didn't mean to scare you anyway, he may be a stuck-up perv but he's not intentionally cruel." The younger snickered "he was probably jealous if anything!" At that, Cherry grinned and cautiously unfurled his tail, dropping his guard and becoming more vulnerable. However he still remained alert and distant from the other. It was only after the younger crooked his finger in a 'come hither' motion with a tender smile, did the merman tentatively approach the glass again. He laid on the tank floor close to the seated blonde and seemed to release a saddened sigh.

Looking at the disconsolate redhead made his chest dully ache, and he thought that he'd never seen anything so depressing in all his life. It was immoral to keep such a dynamic creature confined in a barren, cramped tank all alone. He found himself overcome with the strong desire to hold and comfort the other, run his hands through scarlet hair, and assure him that everything would be alright in the end. He touched the glass morosely, knowing that it could never happen and sighed again.

"Sorry about all this. I bet you miss your home and friends, huh?" Cherry just curled up tighter and refused to acknowledge the blonde.

"Well, I'm here for you now." The redhead stirred, and blinked at the other, not registering what he meant. The blonde put his hand flat against the glass and tried again. "So I'll be your friend, and protect you." The other frowned uncertainly, but with eyes full of hope.

"My name's Roxas." The merman's lips silently echoed the last word and he placed his hand directly over his new friend's as if there was no barrier between, as the two shared a smile.

"Rox..?" The merman and blonde both stiffened upon hearing Riku return. He was walking towards them with his hands held up in a surrender stance.

"I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to scare it off like that." He arrived in front of the tank and peered in "Well, it seems Cherry has gotten over it anyways." As if to contradict, the resentful merman spun and struck the glass with his tail, causing a violent bang before rising and irritably resuming his earlier circling along the ceiling, apparently still offended.

"Annoying beast!" Riku grumbled, miffed, before turning back Roxas casually "It's all just as well though, because Xigbar really, _really_ wants us out now." He decided to spare the blonde's ears and didn't reiterate all of Xigbar's vile threats and coarse language. "The shift change is at five and I guess they want an hour or so to hide the evidence from the morning crew."

But the resolute younger had already made up his mind to do one last thing.

"Riku?"

"Yeah?" He was already beginning to shut off some lights throughout the room, leaving the tank for last.

"Can you pretty please do me an itty bitty favor?" he sauntered toward the elder, until they were almost touching.

"Of course Cutie!" Riku beamed, ecstatic at their close proximity "Just say the word!"

Roxas ignored the abhorrent nickname and continued, using his index finger to seductively draw circles on the older boy's chest.

"Is there any way to get closer to the merman…?"

Riku choked, not expecting the inquiry "Clos-? Oh, no way Roxy! No can do!"

"Oh Riku, please! C'mon, I know you can do it!" The younger pleaded with puppy-dog eyes. The elder nearly melted at the sight of the alluring blonde begging so cutely, so he glanced over to the tank, where the redhead was now watching them intently and bit his lip.

"I'm sorry Roxas, really I am, but I just can't!" This was killing him.

"Oh." the disappointed blonde sighed heavily, clearly he was going to have to use his unmatchable _maximum ultimate secret weapon_!

"but what if I…" he suddenly pressed himself completely flush against the other, leaving not a breath of air between them. Then, stood on his tip-toes, ran his hands threw silver hair, and whispered coyly into his ear "-reward you?"

Riku stiffened before shaking with bliss, it was like a dream come true! He eventually managed to pick up his dropped jaw and dreamily reply

"Huh buh…that is…sure! There's a way! Right here!" He tore himself out of Roxas's grasp and fervently raced over to a sealed door on the far side of the tank, practically ripping it off it's hinges in his haste. As Roxas smugly followed the senior through the door, he gave a sly wink in reply to the knowing merman's smirk.

The door opened to reveal a spiral, stainless steel stairway, that went directly upwards much like the one at the room's entrance. Riku had already made his way to the top, eager with the logic that the sooner Roxas got what he wanted, the sooner he would be rewarded.

Upon reaching the top, Roxas saw that it led to a small room, a third of it was taken up by a solid floor with diving air tanks and other scuba equipment, but the remaining two-thirds was empty, the floor simply being a large, metal grate through which he spied clear, blue water several feet below. He realized with a shock that this room led out directly over the merman's tank!

"See!" Riku beamed "They use hatches here to reach the best!" He pointed through the slats "Look there! You can see the creat-" He was violently interrupted by a huge wave of water that had been splashed through the grate, thoroughly soaking him.

Roxas snickered at the merman's childish antics "He really holds a grudge Riku!"

"Ugh!" Riku shook the water off like a shaggy dog "They're gonna think I swam with it!" Then as he noticed the other headed towards the exposed, metal floor. "Watch out Roxy, or you'll end up like me!" He wrung out his color-treated hair for emphasis. The younger wasn't concerned though.

"I think it's just _you_ that he doesn't like." He then kneeled down and peered through the grate at the churning water. The surface was still disrupted from the splash, so he could only see a blurry, broken-up silhouette of the redhead swimming below. He watched as the shadow grew larger before the merman abruptly broke through the surface, throwing his head back to remove his "hair" from out of his eyes. A meager strand remained along his face anyway despite the action, but the movement seemed slightly unnecessary because his locks didn't appear to be weighed down by the water at all, instead of being plastered to his scalp, they swept back upwards in great inhuman spikes.

He blinked inquisitively up at Roxas, who noted that when above water, his skin didn't seem quite as pale. Also he noticed that his gills no longer fluttered, rather they stayed firmly shut, and blended in with the rest of the unmarred flesh.

"Hi again." the blonde gave the merman a small wave and smile, receiving a nod in return. Feeling encouraged, he decided to try something different and stuck two fingers through the slats in the grate.

"Ewww, you want to touch it?" Riku seemed disgusted at the concept, but the blonde just shrugged.

"He doesn't seem to want to anyways…" he started to wriggle the digits like worms, hoping to entice the creature. Unbeknownst to him however, this particular merman despised worms and had no desire to touch the horrid, dry humans that had confined him, no matter how cute or blonde they may be.

Riku made a face "All for the best, I suppose. It's probably all slimy and gross." Though he couldn't see it, the insulted merman scowled at his statement. Riku continued "But you know…I'll touch you if you want Roxy!" This was just too much for the redhead to accept, so before the blonde could give a snappy comeback, he reached up and clutched Roxas's outstretched fingers.

"Woah!" Roxas jumped in alarm at the unexpected grasp, but was soon composed and marveled at the sensation of the merman's touch.

He had expected it to be as Riku described, cold and coated with mucous. However, he was relieved to find that his skin was actually unusually warm and soft. In turn, the merman admired the human's smooth flesh, not nearly as dry or rough as imagined. He held on for a moment more, before lingeringly releasing and sliding back beneath the water's surface, content.

Roxas stood up slowly, feeling surreal, and absentmindedly rubbed his fingers together.

"No slime."

"Great," Riku deadpanned "Just lovely. Well, if it makes you happy…" He trailed off after failing to suppress a yawn. "So, got enough for one night? I'm beat and need to dry off…" The drowsy senior seemed ready to fall asleep there and then.

Roxas smirked at how exhausted Riku was, so different from his usual excitable, pervy spazz self. He'd have to fix that.

"Yeah, I'm ready. Xigbar's probably going to kill us now anyway." then, he quickly gave the elder a chaste peck on the cheek, his reward, and said sincerely. "Thank you Riku."

As if a switch had been flipped, all of Riku's weariness disappeared in a flash and he leapt to his feet touching the area where Roxas had kissed with a huge, goofy grin stretched across his face.

Roxas had willingly kissed him! Finally, months of off-key nighttime serenades, careful stalking, and overpriced hallmark love letters were paying off! Fireworks were going off inside and he gleefully declared this day _the_ best ever.

"Now let's get out of here." Roxas bluntly interrupted his giddy celebration and started to head back down the spiral stairs to where Xibar was impatiently waiting at the bottom.

" 'Bout time ya finished, I was jus' 'bout to git you two m'self. An' what'r you so happy 'bout?" grumbled the irate guard upon seeing Riku's euphoric expression as he floated after his crush.

"I think I just died and went to heaven!" came the elated reply. Xigbar spat in disgust at him for being so lovey-dovey, before ranting on how important it was that they not tell a single soul about the discovery. His lecture fell upon deaf ears though, as both teenagers were too caught up in their own worlds to pay him attention. Likewise, neither Xigbar nor Riku noticed the desperate, lingering glances between the blonde and the redhead, or the way that the merman swam alongside the other for as long as he possibly could, trying his hardest to stay with the delightful boy.

Or how the intent blonde silently mouthed on his way out "I'll be seeing you again."

_To be continued…._

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**Author's notes:**

Don't worry about them picking the wrong name for "Cherry". He can actually talk and will set them straight soon, he's just a little traumatized by humans right now.

And soooo, the final "Blondie Seduction: Riku vs. The Fish" score is….

Fish:7 Riku:1

Poor Riku, he tries so hard, but instead he just plays matchmaker for his crush! XD The fact that Roxas semi-kissed them both within a half-hour (Through glass and on the cheek) cracks me up! man-whore! lol

The next update might be a tad slower, (Sorry!) because I have my birthday (Yay!) and portacath removal surgery (Still Yay, I've been wanting that thing out for months!) this weekend. So I may be a lil' distracted….But, I'll still have it up as soon as possible! You can bet on that!

Anywhoos~

PLEASE REVIEW AND SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS CHAPTER!

I appreciate it a ton!

THANK YOU!


	3. The Deceiver

**Author's notes:**

Sooo super-duper sorry for the late update! Don't say I didn't warn you though! ;p

Even though I completed this chapter on Sunday the 9th, my internet/phoneline is dead, so I had to wait before I could upload it. (I'm borrowing my friend's right now) Also, it's later than normal because I just went on two week-long trips. One to DisneyWorld for my birthday! (Squee! It was my first time going, so fun! I'm still tired.) and another to visit my out of state grandparents for an early Mother's Day. I was actually planning on having this chapter up _before_ I left to my grandparent's, but the Disney trip came as a surprise! ;p

I want to give a humongous, massive THANK YOU to the folks who've reviewed both chapters so far; iluvtoady, Jaike Kyr, and Shironami-Whitewave!

Also, a big Thanks to all my new reviewers too! You're all awesome!

Thanks to Amissa, Khuronji, With-All-Hearts, Chase-la, and XxXAnimeGirlXxX.

And thanks to everybody for waiting!

I HOPE YOU ENJOY IT!

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When his alarm first went off in the morning, Roxas couldn't understand why he was so tired. The blaring alarm, usually distressing enough to wake the dead, sounded muted and far away. He sluggishly rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, still too drowsy to put an end to the nagging machine or even just sit up.

Upon hearing his Mom's unintelligible voice travel through the walls, he pried opened his eyes and blinked blearily around his room. Everything felt fuzzy and surreal. He was dimly aware of his mother's shouts, but couldn't bring himself to try and decipher what she meant.

After a series of resounding footsteps thudded throughout the hall, the door swung open abruptly to reveal her, looking tired and cross.

"Didn't you hear me? I told you _three times _to shut that thing off already!" Her terse prompts weren't as easy to ignore as the clock. So at her insistence, he finally put an end to the clock's maddening screams.

His mother, Tifa, was his sole guardian. She was a very kindhearted woman, although any poor soul who happened to come across her in the morning would beg to differ. She worked twelve hour night shifts at the island's police station and would arrive home shortly before her son was set to wake up at 6:30. While Roxas hated being woken by his irate mother, he had to admit that her night hours were very convenient when it came to sneaking out late or inviting over _special friends _for some illicit activities. A bit of testiness in the beginning was more than worth the payoff at the end.

"Sorry Ma, I'm just so tired…" he put extra stress on the last word and added a yawn to emphasize. She wasn't impressed by his act though.

"Well, you're not staying home today. C'mon get up! Maybe you can take a nap after school." _Not gonna happen _The weary teen couldn't even remember the last time he had slept during the day.

He got up motivated by the grim fact that his mother wasn't above kicking him outside in his pajamas if she felt he was going to be late. His head swam upon standing and he had to lean against the wall to steady himself. He took advantage of the brief moment of fatigue to ponder the reason for his exhaustion.

He seemed to recall sneaking out late for a rendezvous with Riku and that his classmate was eager to show him something, but he just couldn't wrap his head around the concept. Why would he willingly meet up with Riku? Where did they go? What were they supposed to see?

Was it all just a dream?

He was so hindered by the haunting questions whose answers lay right out of reach, that he didn't even realize which outfit he'd put on until after leaving his room. He was close to a mental break-down before a rare sight interrupted his panic, Tifa was waiting by the front door to see him off. He was noticeably caught off-guard to find her there, as she would normally be catching up on missed sleep around this time. Work taxed her so much that her good-bye's were few and far between.

She gave him a warm smile and he could feel of his earlier queries and tension leak out of him.

"What's got you all frantic? Ready to face the day?" He sighed at her questions, releasing a breath that he wasn't even aware of holding, before mumbling something unintelligible and avoiding her gaze.

She playfully flicked his nose, "Dilly dally shilly shally! What was that you said now?" He scoffed at her dated phrase before snapping "Ready as I'll ever be!"

She clapped her hands together, pleased. "Yes, that's my lil' ray of sunshine!" She then gave him a swift kiss on his forehead, a rare act upon which he swore to die before allowing his friends to witness. He sputtered indignantly and vigorously rubbed at the offended area. "_Mom_!"

She just chuckled at his amusing, childish antics and left in good spirits to obtain some well-deserved rest. "G'night Roxas! Have a nice day at school!"

Roxas found that without his mother's distraction, his earlier panic returned tenfold. Walking to school was like waking from a dream. The frigid, morning air cleared his mind and brought back vivid memories. He remembered getting together with Riku against his better judgement, walking to Tako's, and being shown a large tank. Without a doubt, that had all occurred last night. However, the discovery inside the tank had to be a dream, it was impossible for it to be anything more than a fantasy.

These thoughts did nothing to convince his gut instinct though and the memories that plagued him refused to cease. He made up his mind to speak with Riku on the subject as soon as possible.

That seemed easily done, considering that the platinum-haired teen in question was waiting for him out front, a routine act that usually aggravated him, but today brought sweet relief.

"Hellooo!" the chipper elder sang, waving so fast that his arm was a just blur. He jogged forward lightly to meet Roxas halfway.

"How was your night, Roxy?" the younger's face twitched _Well you should know…_

Riku grinned, interpreting the standoffish younger's silence as "I don't know how to properly express how magical it was."

"So since last night went so well, I was thinking…" Blushing, he glanced away and nervously fiddled with his hoodie's drawstring. The blonde, a master of seduction himself, wasn't about to fooled _He must want something if he's trying to use the sudden coy act. _His hunch was confirmed a short second later.

"Do you wanna maybe hang out at Fryst Fisk after school or something?" immediately after finishing the bashful invitation, he assumed his "good luck stance", which involved double crossed fingers and a look of extreme concentration while mentally chanting 'Ohpleasesayyes!' and 'ohpleasedontpunchme!'.

Roxas grimaced and bit back the natural reflex to refuse. Fryst Fisk was a popular teen hangout, an ice-cream parlor with vintage décor. Although he really didn't want to give the older teen any reason to believe that he _liked_ hanging out with him, he did have a lot of questions to ask and now wasn't the time to do it. He glanced around and realized with a flush of embarrassment that he'd have to make up his mind quickly because people were starting to shoot them odd looks. _We must look like a couple of deranged statues… I hate to give him the satisfaction, but I guess I have no choice._

"Fine." he huffed heavily, announcing the dread filled word as if it was his death sentence.

Riku leapt up and released whoop, "Whoo-hoo! Date number two!" Mortified, the golden-haired boy tried to hush him by shouting over his ecstatic cheers. "WRONG!" _Great, as if we weren't getting enough weird looks already!_

The infatuated teen was utterly unfazed by his outburst though. He had just secured two dates in two nights, he was invincible! "Date number three then?" The blonde blanched at the mere thought.

"How the hell do you get three from none?"

The older teen simpered "Don't you remember our first date?"

"No." the junior deadpanned. "Probably because it never happened!" Riku just shrugged, chalking it up to memory lapse, and took it upon himself to refresh his partner's memory.

"Well, like most first dates, it was a bit awkward. You stumbled and accidentally spilt your milkshake on me after I fell in my brave attempt to rescue you." he struck what he thought was a grand, heroic pose. "I know you were embarrassed, but you didn't have to run away, I would have forgiven you!" he shot the other a fond smile, but Roxas could only gape in disbelief. _Only Riku's fantasy-filled brain could twist memories so much just to suit his fancy. _The blonde could remember that so-called first date perfectly; it was shortly after they'd been introduced and he had quickly gotten fed-up with pervy, know-it-all. After the over-attentive geek failed to get the point, the blonde figured that he wasn't expressing himself clearly enough and decided to rectify the problem right away. He'd purposely tripped the other before dumping his drink all over him and leaving. He slept that night confident in his belief that he'd never be bothered again by that silver menace. He never would have imagined that that night was the beginning of a long and frustrating love-hate relationship.

"That. Was. Not. A. Date!" Roxas ground out, each word dripping venom, before adding gruffly "And neither was last night!" His tirade was interrupted by a feminine voice

"Roxas!" one his close friends, Kairi, had caught sight of him and was calling him over. She gave him a quick wave from where she sat next to her boyfriend before resuming her gossip with Olette, a fellow junior. Riku cringed, he was always uncomfortable around females, for he found the opposite gender to be intimidating. "Ugh…" he shuddered and backed away slightly before sprinting off. "I'll see ya later Roxynator!" Roxas silently thanked Kairi for inadvertently saving him as he headed towards the large magnolia tree that shielded his friends' sitting area.

"Hey guys." The two girls both greeted him cheerfully in response, but the other member of their group lay sprawled along the grass, too absorbed in his latest handheld game to pay him any attention. His name was Sora and he resembled Roxas in nearly all aspects except for his hair, which was a rich, chocolate brown. Despite their close appearances though, they were polar-opposites and weren't related in any way, something Roxas was infinitely grateful for every day.

Olette, always a morning person, gave him a beaming smile that faltered slightly upon seeing his ragged face.

"Something eating you?" He casually waved off her concern "Just didn't get enough sleep last night."

rolled her eyes "Nobody does anymore Rox. Anyways…" she began to rummage around inside her lavish designer purse, clearly searching for something. While she was busy, the straw-haired male pinched himself, hoping to redirect his train of thought from the way her red locks were involuntarily reminding him of someone else.

"Aha!" She had managed to dig out a slightly squished Ziploc bag. "Got something for you!" The bag was tossed to him and all of his previous thoughts were banished from his mind at the sight of three delicious, home-made sugar cookies. "Thanks Kai." He sat down to devour them right next to the second boy, who was still thoroughly immersed in his gameboyDS.

Upon getting a whiff of the sweet treats however, the brunet paused his exaggerated playing gestures to whine.

"Hey, how come I didn't get some?"

Kairi feigned surprise and exclaimed. "He lives!" referring to his earlier game induced trance.

"As a zombie maybe." Olette snorted. Sora pouted as the two girls snickered at his expense. "Even zombies need their cookies!"

Kairi crossed her arms and arched a thin eyebrow, reminding Roxas very much of his own mother. Sora was persistent though and resorted to his own maximum ultimate secret weapon: sweet baby-blue, puppy eyes. _Damn he's good!_

Kairi struggled to remain firm, but was ultimately helpless against such charms. She heaved an aggravated sigh before giving in and producing another bag for him along with a quick peck on the cheek. Olette shuddered as Sora shoved all three baked goods into his mouth at once. "Those eyes are the world's most powerful weapon, nobody can resist them!" Content now that his hunger was sated, the hyper brunet turned to his look-alike and began to ramble on enthusiastically.

"Hi Rox! Did I say 'hi' to you earlier? I don't think so. Anyway Rox, you gotta check out this new game! It's got this magical mouse with a key and heartless gumball machines and hot bad guys and lots 'n' lots of DISNEY CHARACTERS! Isn't that the coolest thing you've ever heard?" the spirited chatter paused for a minute while he caught his breath.

Roxas guessed from the way they rolled their eyes that the others had heard his spiel multiple times before. He saw Kairi mouth something that looked suspiciously like 'I should never have given him sugar'.

"Yeah, sounds great Sora." he responded dryly, effectively covering up his slight curiosity on the subject. _Gumball machines without hearts…? Hot bad guys…! _

A contradicting voice rang out ""No actually, it sounds lame." The disagreeing new arrival jabbed a finger at the talkative brunet "And I thought you said you'd work on prattling less in the mornings? Some of us are still trying to wake up!" The put-down didn't offend Sora in the slightest, and he gleefully greeted the stubborn aggressor.

"Hey Hay! What's happening? Have a nice morning?" The bullheaded blonde was Hayner, Roxas's oldest friend and president of "Start Your Day at the Crack of Noon" club. He scowled and chose to steer clear of that topic.

"You got crumbs all over your mug, man." Sora didn't miss a beat

"No silly, it's my new make-up routine! Sugar cookie facial, want to try some?" He then brushed the remains of the sugary confections off his face with an over-the-top, animated motion.

Hayner took him to his word and glanced in the redhead's direction with a small smile "Well if you're offering…" but she just shook her head ruefully. "No more Hayner, sorry."

"I see how it is! See, this is why I hate mornings!" the peroxide blonde spat in disgust before furiously whipping around to face Roxas. "Sucks, huh man? Chicks only bring enough for their boyfriends." As tempting as it was to correct him and ignite one of his regular blind rages, he opted for peace instead under the guise that it was too early for a brawl and adverted the subject.

"Here comes Pence, late as usual."

It was true, the rotund junior was almost always the last to arrive, if he arrived at all. He hiked over to them with difficulty, huffing and puffing all the way. Olette giggled and teased him lightly "You're early sweetie, there's still a minute left before the bell!" He panted out his usual excuse "I came as soon as I possibility could."

"I see." Olette hummed skeptically. "Well since you were running late.." she reached into her eco-friendly tote and took out a reusable lunchbox. "I bet that means you didn't have time for breakfast!" Pence enveloped her in a warm embrace, ignoring Hayner's sneers and Sora's gagging noises in the background.

"Thanks 'lette, you're the best!"

Roxas himself had to fight back gagging at the sugary sweet scene.

People often wondered why a pretty and athletic girl like Olette was going out with a clumsy, heavyset boy like Pence. Whenever asked, she would give a tinkling laugh and reply with 'Plump is pleasin' more for squeezin'!'. Roxas knew that she loved him for his kind, courteous personality though, and was actually a bit worried about his weight, not for appearances sake, but for his health. He was willing to bet that the breakfast she'd packed was tasty, but also nutritious and non-fattening. He could remember Pence coming to him the first day he met her complaining that she was like a unstoppable whirlwind, exchanging his daily nutty bars into Fuji apples. Pence didn't seem to mind as much anymore though, and the last thing Roxas had heard him say on the matter was that apples and carrots weren't half bad when you get used to them.

The loud ring of the bell interrupted their moment and announced the call to attend class.

There was shuffling as the group toiled, all trying to collect their possessions in time. The exception being Sora, who had reopened his DS and was once again firmly transfixed to the screen. Kairi yanked on his sleeve but he didn't budge. "C'mon Sora!"

"Sorry Kai, but I'm fighting Oogie Boogie and can't afford to pause right now." She waggled a threatening finger at him and hotly stated that she would turn it off for him if he didn't get ready _right now_.

After he didn't acknowledge her, Olette decided to take matters into her own hands and snatched the game system right out of his hands. "Class now, evil disney villains later." she reiterated in a classic mother's tone. Sora's subsequent bellyaching was drowned out by the crowd's mocking laughter. Olette passed the game to Pence, who could shut it off without losing data, before sharing a high-five with Kairi.

Roxas snickered "Quit your moping Sora, they went easy on you." He knew from personal experience just how frightening the girls could get in mother-hen mode.

Kairi demonstrated exactly what he meant a second later, fiercely grabbing Sora, still mourning over the loss of his beloved game, by the ear and dragging him away. "Honestly now, I'm going to call you Sora the Sulk if you keep that up! Our class is on the other side of campus and last thing you need is another detention for tardiness!" She peeked over her shoulder one last time and gave a short wave. "Bye-bye 'lette dear, see you at lunch!" Then turned her sights back to her unfortunate boyfriend. "I hope you didn't forget your homework again!"

"They're both completely insane…" Olette mused, 'So perfect for each other." Roxas coughed, uncomfortable with the situation. "Yeah well, that's just great, but I have to go."

"Hold on a sec Rox!" She steadily held him in place. Unlike her iron grip, her face was deceivingly soft as she bit her lip in concern "I'm worried about you! Are you sure you're okay, because you've been really quiet this morning!"

She received a severe glower in return "Olette…" She released him with a faint sigh.

"Alright, alright! I'll stop!" Her look suddenly grew stern, signaling that she was about to give some words of advice and that he'd better pay close attention. "But remember Rox, friends are here to make life easier, pushing them away only makes it harder!"

Roxas hated to admit it, but Olette's warning was painfully accurate. He felt as if he was carrying a great burden and would explode unless he found somebody to confide in soon. Inside him, the secret appeared to weigh tons, and without his friends to divert his attention, his unmanageable mind kept drifting back to cryptic memories.

He was on auto-pilot through the first of his courses, going through the motions robotically, with thoughts clouded by crimson hair and emerald eyes.

In ceramics, he disregarded the teapot he was supposed to be glazing and absentmindedly painted underwater scenes in clay slip.

"Nice fish Rox." an older blonde complimented him. Roxas just waved him off, he knew better than to take anything that particular senior said seriously. Especially compliments, as he had already decided long ago that was impossible to impress that student.

"Shoo Demyx!" The other disregarded his request with a flippant wave and snickered.

"You look dog-tired." Roxas glared and distantly wondered why the older artist was bothering him instead of spacing out like usual. Demyx was an aloof musician who didn't usually like to get involved with others. He spent most of his time writing music and sleeping, anything to shirk his responsibilities and avoid exerting himself.

After a while, the younger stopped caring and it wasn't long before last night's memories resurfaced. Lost in visions of ruby scales and striped fins, he resumed his thoughtless doodling. Demyx glanced over and took it upon himself to critique his new work. "You forgot the tits on that mermaid."

In math class, he rubbed his fingers together in a daze, recalling the redhead's tender touch, occasionally having to refuse his compassionate teacher who repeatedly inquired if he wished to see the nurse. Kairi managed to momentary interrupt his entrancement, asking if he was feeling alright while handing over the notes he'd missed for him to copy before lunch. He shrugged off her concerned glance and stated that he was fine.

Even the deafening bellows of his ill-tempered EMT teacher couldn't break him out of his reverie. The teacher screamed himself hoarse at Roxas for daydreaming, Sora for playing his DS under the table during surgery roleplay, and Hayner for sword fighting with scalpels. Neither his classmate's tomfoolery nor his teacher's rant were noticed by the blonde.

The only class that managed to briefly hold his attention was Japanese. His sensei introduced several new kanji, one of them being the symbol for 'fish'. He was captivated upon learning that when combined with the character for 'person', it made the Japanese word for mermaid, ningyo. Now, he had a new word echoing through his skull in addition to the flashbacks of last night that never ceased to plague his mind.

He couldn't stand the idea of waiting three hours to get answers, every minute felt like an eternity. So when the lunch bell rang, he resolved to find his silver-haired stalker again and get some closure.

He didn't have to search long though. Riku, in an unexpected show of boldness, had parked himself right in the middle of Roxas's personal 'eating area' and the usual crowd was taking notice. Neither Sora nor Pence seemed to mind the extra company, but that was not saying much, as Sora still had his nose buried in his new game and Pence was generally laid-back as a rule. Both were actually close friends with Riku, as they all shared a common interest in certain computer games. Pence had been the one to introduce the blonde to Riku early last year, something that Roxas often held against him.

Olette seemed to be pretending that he wasn't there, but Hayner was jeering and flicking bits of food at the intruder. Surprisingly, Kairi was also giving him the evil-eye. Roxas heard her growl "Bug off, creep!" and remembered her confiding her worries in him the other day that Riku had his eye on her soft-spoken sister. Despite the fact that he assured her otherwise, pointing out his obsession with himself and aversion to women as proof, he couldn't help but feel that her hunch was spot-on. He caught the lingering, pleading looks that he shot often shot in the flaxen haired girl's direction. They weren't "dating" so it didn't bother him at all that his stalker was stalking another. However, he did pity the girl slightly. Kairi's blonde sister, Naminé, was a complete opposite of her, petite and easily frightened. She wouldn't be able to control Riku with the firm hand he required. _Oh well, _he mentally shrugged _better her than me. _He personally looked forward to the day when Riku pursued somebody else.

"Roxas!" Hayner heatedly raged, "Can you _please_ tell your crazy little obsessor to find some other place to contaminate!"

"Yeah!" Kairi chimed in, shaking a fist in the "obsessor's" direction. Riku scooted even farther away from her, but for once, didn't back down. Roxas had a feeling that hanging around a frail girl like Naminé was making him more daring.

"Well, the inbreeding is certainly obvious in your family." Outraged, Kairi threw her sandwich at him "Naminé's part of my family to you freak!" From the surprised look on his face, Roxas guessed that the thought had never occurred to him.

"Maybe she's adopted then." he casually peeled the sandwich out of his pearly hair, leaving some condiments behind. It had gotten squished upon impact and was in bad shape, but that didn't stop him from tentatively trying a bite.

"Not bad at all, my tapeworm's going to eat good today." He resumed eating oblivious to Kairi's scowl or Olette's disgusted grimace.

Roxas stomped his foot, fed up with the deriding banter and intent on getting some answers. "Riku, as much as it pains me to interrupt this moment, I need to-" Hayner swiftly cut him off.

"I think the mustard actually improves your hair freak! It's not like it can get any worse!" Roxas fumed, livid from being cut short. "Hayner-" He was promptly interrupted again, this time by Riku who cheekily retaliated with

"It is such a shame you ruin your pretty blonde hair by dying the roots black." Roxas twitched, it was quite obvious that Hayner's hair came from a bottle, but as far as he knew, nobody had every said it so bluntly. The fact that Hayner seemed at a loss of words confirmed it, so the blonde decided to support him, momentarily forgetting his earlier intentions.

"Riku, how the hell can you make fun of someone who bleaches their hair when yours looks like….like…" He couldn't quite find the word he was looking for, so he jabbed a finger toward the offending silver locks to prove his point. The elder gave a large grin and garbled through chipmunk cheeks full of sandwich.

"It's a gorgeous, lustrous shade of argentite, thank you very much." He took a moment to wistfully finger one of his silvery tresses. "With a faint hint of mustard…" The blonde groaned.

"That's great Riku, but I wanted to ask you-" Hayner's taunt drowned out his request.

"I bet your mother has a loud bark!" Gravely offended, Riku gaped at him mid-chew, effectively displaying a masticated mix of bread, cheese, and lunchmeat to them all.

Upon hearing the resounding "Ewww's" that followed, Sora paused his game to look around inquisitively. "What? What happened? I missed it!"

"Yeah, too bad." Pence mocked from around a celery stalk "It was really awesome too, your life would've been changed forever." Sora blew him a raspberry before resuming his game. "Oh, I'm am sooo sure."

Roxas rolled his eyes at his clueless before returning his attention to Riku, who seemed to have caught sight of something enthralling behind him. "Listen Riku, I want-" "Hold that thought Rox." insulted for the last time, Roxas bristled.

"What? No I will not! I've been interrupted three times now!" Riku didn't seem to be listening though and was looking back and forth between the seething blonde and the thing behind him as if comparing.

"Uhhh…excuse me! Talk to you later!" Apparently, he had come to the conclusion that the person behind him was more important and took off after them. To Roxas, it appeared as if he was chasing a head of long, golden hair. Kairi leapt to her feet with a ferocious growl, "Ugh! That's it! You're _so_ dead!" She viciously charged after him with Hayner cheering her on. "Show no mercy! Go for the jugular!"

Roxas kicked at the ground in his frustration. _Damn it! So much for getting my answers during lunch…_

In English class, the fact that Hayner and Kairi were still seething from lunch did nothing to brighten his mood any, and it sunk even lower after he failed a pop-quiz. The idea of leaving this agonizing class for his next almost sounded good, Riku or no Riku. Of course, he swiftly changed his mind when he actually arrived at Chemistry.

The insufferable senior stared at him throughout the class, winking and blowing kisses whenever their eyes met. But it was typical behavior and Roxas found it easy to ignore. Especially when he had something so much more fascinating to focus on. His thoughts hadn't changed the slightest since this morning, but simply grew more intense. He was so consumed by his fantasies that he was hardly even aware of class flying by. After the final dismissal bell rang, Riku broke his concentration by sprinting over to his desk, practically bouncing in his excitement.

"Ready to head out?" Roxas shielded his eyes from the other's blinding smile and heaved a despairing sigh in acknowledgement.

Once at the ice-cream parlor, he purchased himself a regular vanilla soft-serve and sourly refused Riku's cries of paying, not wanting to turn this into a date. After finding a suitable table out of earshot from others, he immediately began pouring liberal amounts of salt onto his frozen dairy treat, garnering disgusted glances from onlookers. Riku just giggled and thought the blonde's strange taste was endearing. He was pretty sure that Fryst Fisk didn't start providing salt-shakers until Roxas had became a regular customer.

"Sooo…" Roxas hesitated, unsure on where to start. Although he had spent all day yearning for answers, he now found himself at a loss on how to get them properly.

"So?" Riku egged him on eagerly.

"About last night…"

After it was apparent that he wasn't going to continue, Riku happily finished for him. "You loved it right?"

The blonde couldn't hold back any longer, and finally blurted out the most pressing question that had been haunting him all day

"Was it really a mermaid?" Riku smugly leaned his chair back onto two legs.

"Mer_dude_ actually, but yes, yes it was."

"Not a prank?" the other sharply challenged. "Because I swear, if this is your idea of a practical joke, I'll-!" He was about to say something involving murder or castration, but changed his mind last second and took a more personal approach. "-burn your comic books." _You have to hit 'em where it hurts. _Riku choked in alarm and fear for his valuable collection, the action causing him to lose balance and fall back, flailing all the while. Unfortunately, the chair was wrought iron and the thunderous clang reverberated throughout the parlor, briefly drawing everybody's eyes to them. The senior gawked uncomprehendingly at the collapsed chair from where he had tumbled before deciding put the whole thing behind him.

"That didn't just happen." he smoothly assured the other from where he sat on the tile. Roxas made a face. _Can't he go anywhere without making a scene…? _

"Whatever, just get off the floor and answer the question."

Riku stood up and cleared his throat before guaranteeing confidently. "It most certainly was not a prank."

The blonde went straight to the point. "Then, can I _please_ see him again?" Riku seemed perplexed at the request. "Huh?"

Roxas glared, irritated that he was skirting the issue. "You heard me, I'd like to go again tonight!" The elder winced.

"Oh Roxypox, weren't you listening to Xigbar at all last night?"

Roxas harshly struck the table, incensed both at the ridiculous nickname and the insinuation that he didn't pay attention. _He's right though, of course I wasn't listening. _He hadn't paid the senile guard the slightest shred of attention at all, having been far too caught up attempting to digest the fact that mermaids exist. However, he'd sooner go skinny-dipping in artic waters than admit his faults, so he glared and defiantly recalled the only bit of information that had sunk in.

"Yeah I paid attention plenty! He said that in the beginning, they studied him at night since he is nocturnal to review his behavior and stuff, but he just laid down and did nothing 'cause he was so stressed. And since they keep him awake during the day, he's starting to sleep at night." he could vividly recall the dull pain he'd felt in his chest when told the news, and the way that it strengthened his resolve to protect him. It had ignited a fire inside him, spawned from the fury towards people who harassed and caused him that stress.

Riku tried once more "But don't you remember anything else? _Something important?_" A dirty look answered his question clearly and the crestfallen teen seemed to deflate with a rueful sigh.

"I'm sorry Roxers, really! But Xigbar said that some scientists would be taking Cherry away to the mainland today. I don't know where, just to some other aquarium."

Roxas could hear the world crashing down around him, he was completely devastated. _I promised to take care of him! _

"It's really too bad Foxy, I know you liked that fish." he sounded truly remorseful, for he had become convinced overnight that Cherry was a good luck charm after receiving his first kiss from the blonde. He knit his brow, bothered about being sent back to square one. Him being Riku though, he got over it quickly enough.

"So, you want to catch a movie?" He put on a happy expression, hoping to cheer up his 'date', but the blonde didn't react, for he was only hearing one thing. _Gone._

Riku waited patiently for his response.

"That's a yes, right?" Patience only lasts so long though and after all, he wasn't not not agreeing. "Great! Is there one you have in mind? There's this adorable romantic comedy out right now called Zombie Martians from-"

The blonde cut him off in a dull, lifeless monotone. "I don't want to go to the movies." and as Riku started to open his mouth again "-or the waterpark either."

The elder slumped. "Darn, I like the waterpark. Well then, what _do_ you want to do?"

"I just want to see Cherry again." The hollow reply was the softest that Riku had ever heard from the blonde, and it frightened him.

"Umm…I could draw a picture of him for you instead!" Riku thought he hit a homerun with that one, the blonde had once said that his masterly artistic talent was his only redeeming feature. However, the blonde looked away and remained soundless. The senior wasn't about to give up though.

"No? Well we can wait until they unveil him to the world. I'm sure there'll be admission tickets then!" That one was a bomb, a horrible flop that depressed the junior even more. Riku was starting to panic, anything was better than depressed Roxy, even pissed off why-didn't-that-restraining-order-work-on-you Roxy.

"No again…? Well uhhh," He swiveled around, hoping for a flash of brilliance or stroke of sudden genius. "We can go to Tako's anyways. I mean, it's still fun even without it." He cowered as soon as the words went past his lips, sure that Roxas would take offense at the suggestion. To his astonishment however, the blonde's interest seemed piqued.

"Really? We could still go?" Although he'd only seen the merman once, he now had trouble imagining Tako's without him. _But what if Riku's wrong…? _The doubt remained and fed him hope, he solved to see for himself whether or whether not he had truly been taken away.

"How's about eleven tonight then? My mom's working so I can sneak out easy." Riku nodded dumbly, still in shock over the blonde's acceptance.

"We're going on another Tako's date? It's just like a dream… It's even got romantic background music!" The music he spoke of was loud punk rock, booming throughout the area.

Roxas growled "No Riku, it's just that annoying jerk over there." he fixed a caustic glare on the source, a gum-chewing, headphoned youth who was sauntering in their direction. "and if you think that's romantic music, then I have- oh no!" On closer inspection, the teen was revealed to be the same pestering, mohawked blonde that irked him every morning.

He casually strolled up to their table, bringing his own soundtrack with him.

"Hey! You guys are looking lively!" Riku didn't notice his crush's annoyance and tried to bellow over the ear-splitting noise. "HELLOOO DEMYX!" The elder blonde seemed affronted and commented in a perfectly normal, subdued tone.

"You don't have to shout man. Seriously, you wanna make me deaf or something?" Riku blinked, having assumed that the music had already done it for him.

"So…" the artist snapped his gum with a sly grin. "I heard you kiddies talking 'bout sneaking into Tako's tonight." Roxas spoke up, sneering.

"How the hell can you hear anything with that racket blasting in your ears?" Demyx cocked his head to the side innocently. "What was that you said now? I'm afraid you'll have to speak up." The youngest wasn't the least bit amused. The musician blew a large, pink bubble before speaking again.

"So is Xiggy helping you in?"

The junior challenged him back. "What's it to you?" Demyx shrugged, and turned up the blasting music. "I like Xiggy."

Xigbar had been close friends with Demyx's late father. After he passed away, the old guard played a big part in raising him. Roxas had heard nasty rumors circulating around school saying that Xigbar was pedophile who lusted after the young musician. However, the blonde junior had worked most of last summer with him and never got that vibe. In the end, he figured that it was just typical teenagers inventing stupid stories for entertainment. _Although, the one where Xigbar was an ax-murder who used Demyx as bait seemed quite probable…_

The song in the eldest's headphone's switched and became softer, much to the relief of the surrounding patrons whose nerves had been shot in the uproar.

"What exactly are you two planning on doing all alone so late at night anyways?" Roxas flushed at the barely concealed innuendo but Riku just laughed. "It's a secret!" The dirty-blonde senior smirked with a gleam in his eye.

"Well, alright then. Have fun!" He turned and traipsed away, taking the clamoring din with him, but the younger blonde had a dark, sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that they hadn't seen the last of the artist.

XxXxXxXx

The house's atmosphere was hectic as Tifa got ready to leave for work. Three hours earlier, she had thanked Riku warmly for 'walking her little boy home', despite Roxas's flak that his follower was really just obsessively shadowing him, before she promptly went back to her nap. Unfortunately for her, she'd overslept and was now paying for it. She stumbled about, gathering up the needed equipment in a hurry to make up for lost time. Her uniform that usually made her appear quite formidable now added to the comicality of the situation. Once she had everything together, she stepped outside, pausing only long enough to give one last backwards glance.

"Bye Sweetie! Don't forget to finish your homework! And try to get some better sleep tonight, okay?"

He shouted his affirmation through the open door, but she was already pulling out of the driveway and didn't hear him. _Oh well._

He was already anxious to leave, but Tako's was still open and there was still four more hours until he was supposed to go. He whittled his time away surfing the internet. He used Google to look up 'mermaid', 'merman', 'realistic merman', 'redhead merman', and out of curiosity 'sexy merman'. However, none of the sites described anything quite like what he had seen and all of the images were clearly photoshopped. Eventually, he found himself on a forum where various people spoke about their encounters with 'fish people'. 90% of them involved mer_maids_, and 99% of them were obviously fabricated.

Only one post he read seemed authentic, the author was a middle-aged lady who wrote about a tale that her grandmother swore was true. Supposedly, her grandmother was rescued as a child by a "fantastical magenta creature" that had "several striped fins like billowing sails" and "the upper half of a handsome, violet-haired man with a marked face". The beast had retrieved her from where she was drowning and brought her to shore without saying a word. Roxas internally thought that sounded a lot like a purple version of Cherry and didn't doubt it's authenticity. He paused to wonder just how many true mermaid sightings had been written off as hoaxes, certainly he wouldn't of believed that tale two days ago.

He glanced at the clock during his moment of reprieve and was shocked to notice just how dark the house had grown. Without him realizing it, hours had passed during his browsing and he was pleased to find that it almost time to go. He dressed warmly and turned on every nightlight in the house before setting out on his trek. There was nothing scarier than being alone inside a dark house, in his mind.

The crisp night air gave him goosebumps and turned his breath into puffs of fog, even though he'd wrapped his arms around himself in an effort to conserve heat. It wasn't that this night was colder than last, but it was much windier. The biting, icy gusts could be felt in his bones, despite the heavy layers he wore. He kept a steady pace of power walking, jogging occasional to combat the polar air and nippy wind.

As he drew closer to the institute, he acquired an peculiar feeling of dread in his stomach, much like the one he had earlier. The emotion was explained when the institute came into view, displaying not one, or even two, but _three people _awaiting him by the clear, glass doors. _Riku is a given and Xigbar I can easily understand, but why the hell is Demyx here? _

Riku hurried forward to explain while the musician waved cheerfully from behind, lacking his earlier headphones.

"It's not my fault Rox, honest! He bullied! I had no choice!" _Yeah right, baby harp seals are more intimidating than that wimp. _The younger blonde found it more likely that the sly, senior had just tickled Riku's ego until he started bragging and spilled it all. The fact that Demyx was said to be impossible to impress was probably an extra bonus for the silver-haired teen, since he loved challenges.

The artist shrugged cooling. "I just happened to be in the area and thought I'd drop in to say hi to my good friend Xigbar here."

"Bullshit!" Roxas clenched his fists, but the elder remained uncaring.

"Now that's just plain rude! Can't a guy enjoy a peaceful nighttime promenade anymore without being interrogated?"

Xigbar snarled, speaking up for the first time that night. "Cut the crap Dem."

"Ugh…alright. But I just _had_ to see what the big deal is, ya know? I mean-" He leaned close and waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "This fish man must be pretty hot if stonecold Roxy's got the hots for it." Roxas twitched and Riku fled behind Xigbar with a yelp, fearing retaliation from the younger boy who was clearly out for blood.

"I swear, he didn't hear that from me!" Xigbar shook him off and gave him a light kick for extra measure. "Bugger off ya." he then turned to the haphazard group and shouted loud enough to interrupt Roxas's scheme.

"Now all uh ya listen up! Lexaeus ain't here t'night an' it's just me 'n Luxor'. Now neither uh us don't want tuh see any fooling 'round! Ya hear?"

Demyx batted his lashes, reverting back to his blameless act. "C'mon man, you know I'm an angel. Now…bring on the sexy merman!" Nettled, Xigbar spat on the ground with displeasure.

"Ahready toldja, there ain't nothing' there. Ol' Red's gone. Gone. Gone. Gone. Gone. Gone." He adamantly shook his head from side to side with each 'gone', oblivious to the young blonde's sadness. "An' there ain't nothing ya can do 'bout it!" The musician pursed his lips.

"I can always tell when you're lying Xiggy!"

Roxas was jolted out of his depression "Are you lying?"

The guard sniffed. "Wouldn't you like to know…" Demyx then interrupted before Roxas could start to rage, he got close to Xigbar and started to plead in a whining tone.

"C'mon Xiggy! Oh please, please, _please_!" The two other teens exchanged weirded out looks at the close proximity between the musician and guard._ No wonder there's rumors._

"Alright, Fine!" The pony-tailed man threw up his arms in exasperation. "Follow me!" With that curt order, he marched into the institute, not even bothering to hold the door open for the others behind him.

"Wait!" the others barreled after him, each with their own questions, but he was already halfway across the entrance hall and not showing any signs of slowing down. As they chased after him, Roxas absentmindedly noted that the inside air actually felt warmer than outside's for once. _Lovely, 64 degrees isn't bad when you get used to it._

"Wait!" Riku's shouts echoed through the spacious lobby. "Aren't you going the wrong way?" he pointed down towards the hall where he'd brought his crush the night before, but the guard's gait never slowed or wavered. "Nah."

"But the creature's-" Xigbar waved him off.

"Ol' Red's been moved, 'member? I wasn't lying 'bout that, jus' _where_ he was moved tuh!" All three teens cried loudly in unison.

"So, where is he?"

"Holdja horses, jeez! 'membuh how the dolphin show was canceled?" Tako's used to be loved exclusively for it's performing dolphins, who did their act in the outside dome portion of the institute. Last summer however, the infamous animal-right's group PETA had been picketing over the holding of captive cetaceans. Even though all of the health and pool size standards had been met, the group still screamed murder, so Tako's had cancelled the dolphin performances in exchange for a more co-friendly look, much to the disappointment of it's fans.

One of those fans felt the need to inquire now. "I know that was sad, but what does that have to do with it?" Riku gave a confused look while struggling to keep up the agile senior. "Are you saying they put the creature in the dolphinarium? With the dolphins too?" The guard released a roar of laughter. "What're ya, stupid? They can't put 'im in wit' the dolphins. They'd probably eat 'chother!" He broke up into a loud round of guffaws and chortled. "Nah, the dolphins 're long gone. Those're the ones that went tuh dat mainland 'musement park, not Ol' Red."

Riku was flabbergasted. "Wha..buh..how…Why didn't anybody tell me this?" The older guard stopped and whipped around to face them so fast that they all slid and overshot him, not expecting the sudden halt. Roxas had a feeling that he'd been waiting all night for this. "Why? I'll tell ya why, you're a squealer!" Riku quaked in fear. "What?"

"A goddamn squealer! Ya halfta tell er'body ya know 'bout this! Well, yer braggin's gonna cost us our jobs if ya don't shut up!" The elder teen sputtered, but Xigbar bowled him over and continued.

"Think 'bout it! Ya signed an agreement saying ya'd go tuh jail if ya break it! An' ya _like_ breakin' it!" At the end of his rant, he stood breathing hard in front of a sheepish, red-faced Riku. "Whoops, I never thought of it like that before."

"Hmph." The elder flipped his grey-streaked hair over his shoulder before continuing, albeit at a much slower pace than earlier. Riku seemed briefly humbled by the guad's tirade and they walked in relative silence for a while, before reaching a pair of sealed double-doors. A small notice was taped to the thick metal.

Dolphin Lagoon has been disbanded

To the right of that, was a bright, laminated poster covered in flourishes and clipart of marine animals. It read,

"Outside Adventure Dome closed during construction

Otter World has been moved to Stingray Point

Shark Encounter has been moved to Jellyfish Fields

thank you for your patience."

And below it, a cheery page that had a cute picture of The Little Mermaid's Ariel on it declaring,

"Coming Soon: Mermaid Cove"

Demyx cracked up into a laughing fit while the other two teens gaped in disbelief.

"What are they thinking?" The young blonde gasped in horror.

"Yeah," Demyx snorted between peals of mirth "Cherry's a dude, so the picture and name's a tad misleading." The youngest ignored the pathetic attempt at a joke and wheeled wildly around to Xigbar, who'd begun work on the many locks.

"They can't be serious!" The older man grunted.

"They ain't really. This thing's got years 'fore it's completed. They're makin' it like an 'musement park 'r something' themed like the 'lil mermaid out back, so when Ol' Red's shown off, all da news coverage's gonna make this place rich. Folks'll spend 'undreds tuh git here 'n' buy some dumb stuffed merman."

Roxas was insistent. "But the real thing, Cherry, he won't actually be here?"

"Nah, the real thing'll probably be in some lab somewhere bein' studied." The blunt statement struck him like psychical blow and he felt a sharp pain in his chest. _Poor Cherry, I'd rather he be safe on display in an exhibit than poked, prodded, and dissected._

Shortly after Xigbar finished the final lock, they were walking along a cobblestone aisle inside the dome. Despite it's name, the dome wasn't perfectly round at all, but rather it was a large tent that kept that outside exhibits functional and dry during rain. Xigbar spoke to fill the silence. "See, there's ain't no camera watching Ol' Red, right? But there's one watching us while were in dis ally right now. It don't record nothing' though n' Luxor's probably watching us." They all paused to give various gestures to the camera. Roxas waved, Demyx stuck out his tongue, Riku gave a vulcan salute, and Xigbar flipped it off. As they continued on, he spoke again.

"So, the reason why 'e was moved out here was cause they was getting worried that last tank's too small fer 'im. The new tank's still bare n' shit, but least it's bigga. Then they was worried that 'twas to cold fer 'im! Spoilt lil' fish!" He continued explaining as they arrived in Dolphin Lagoon.

"Now, they keep 'im in da holding tank to study 'im-" he pointed to the bare tank in question. "but have 'im go tuh the show tank at night tuh make 'im feel safer. Like workplace n' home, ya know?" The show tank wasn't was deep as the holding tank, but it had more room and wasn't quite as bare. It had a large floating island anchored down in the middle and on one side, it had a smooth, slight incline that was used by the dolphins during shows to beach themselves. It was also distinctively cut into the 'audience' side and 'performer' half. They had gone into the audience area, which was defined by bleachers and a low glass wall intended to block them from the pool. Demyx squinted into the dark waters.

"Your rambling's cool and all Xiggy, but where's Mr. Merman?" Xigbar snorted and opened the gate opening to the performer side. "Rambling? As if! Jus' give me a moment…" he trailed off as he began to type on the control panel. The pool lights came on a minute later. "See! There 'e is!" The merman lay curled on the bottom of the far side of the tank. His shape was slightly indistinct due to his contorted tail, but it was still obviously Cherry. Roxas felt his heart swell and his earlier concerns and worries melted right off of him. His earlier theory that Demyx was immune to surprise was proved once again by the musicians first statement .

"If PETA flipped about dolphins, I wonder what they're going to do when they get wind of this?" Roxas sighed, still relieved to see him safe. "I hope they get him released back into the wild." Demyx just laughed.

"No way man, this thing is too cool! Can it do any tricks?" Roxas rolled his eyes. _Oh sure, we're training him to replace the dolphins. _Riku clucked his tongue condescendingly "Don't be fooled Demyx, he's not smart like a dolphin, I mean look at him! He's just a fish really and you can't teach fish anything."

To the surprise of all, Demyx defended Cherry, hissing in a dark, stony tone "You shouldn't judge anyone by appearance." The others all stared at him, shocked to see such passion in somebody normally so distant. He met their gazes steadily for a moment before doing a complete 180 and cooing in a silly voice. "Here fishy fish! Don't be scared!" _Holy shit! Bipolar much? _Surprisingly, Riku was the first to recover and helpfully chirp.

"His name is Cherry." Demyx took it into stride and started whistling as if calling over a dog. "Here Cherry! C'mon boy!" Xigbar snapped back to his normal self with a shudder before scoffing at the silver teen.

"Is _that_ whatchu call 'im? We named it Flamer, but I normally call 'im Ol Red." Demyx snickered. "Flamer's a good one. Sooo…is he going to move anytime tonight?" The merman was still tightly curled up in the corner, occasional writhing or flicking his tail as if proving that he was awake. Xigbar snorted "Unlikely." and paused to stare seriously at the mulleted musician for a moment before flipping off the pool lights.

"Ya know what, it's a school night n' I gotta head back tuh man the station!" Roxas had a feeling that he was solely lecturing Demyx. Riku sputtered in indignation.

"It's hardly even midnight and he hasn't done anything yet! We stayed 'til four last time!" The guard cuffed him roughly on the head. "I'm not talking to you whelp!" The blonde artist stretched out and yawned as if bored with the whole affair.

"Yeah, I've seen enough anyways." Roxas gave him a baffled look

"But we just got here!" The older shrugged. "You know how it is, see one, you've seen 'em all." Xigbar finished picking something out of his teeth and graciously added.

"But if ya feel like seeing mo', jus' come tuh me. Ya don't need silver here." he poked the teen, still sulking from being smacked "Ya can come ova whenevyas like!

Roxas was the most exuberant. "Really?" The guard nodded. "Yeah, ain't no prob'. I mean, we all're doing it, I don' see why you guys can't." The young blonde hesitated before asking his next question.

"So, can I stay a bit longer tonight?" The grizzled guard huffed. "Fine, but don' come complain' tuh me afta you're all tired." Demyx sniggered, already heading back inside and crowed over his shoulder.

"Have fun loverboy! Good luck with your amphibious romance!" he then proceeded to cackled evilly while Riku had a mini-seizure. Roxas glared at his retreating back as Riku, still spazzing, ran over. "Rox are you sure you don't want me to stay with you and-" The blonde cut off his frenzied offers with a yell. "_Good-night _Riku!" Xigbar chuckled as the defeated teen walked off depressed. That date hadn't gone anything like how he'd hoped.

"Yeah, dat's the way. Ya need a firm hand with that one" he suddenly went into security guard mode.

"Here's da rules! Stay on dis side, don'tcha go over tuh the employee half unless it's tuh turn off da lights, don't throw nothin at it, don't try n' poke at it, don't try n' swim wit' it, don't leave nothing' behind, an' I'll leave yuh my keys so shut off da lights n' lock the door when ya done. Then, give da keys back tuh Luxor' or me. Got it?" Roxas blinked at the long, but easy to follow list and nodded. Xigbar clapped him on the shoulder before heading out. "Be a good boy now!"

Shortly after the sounds of their footsteps faded, there was a light splash alerting him of the elusive merman's presence. Roxas glanced over at the him.

"Hiya Cherry." The redhead was just as he remembered, and he responded with a fleeting smile and a two finger salute. The boy couldn't help but frown slightly.

"Do you just not trust the others or something?" The captive merman crossed his arms and looked up at the canvas cover of the dome as if pondering the question. Roxas continued. "-or do you just really like me?" Cherry threw his head back in a breathy laugh and gave a playful wink before diving back under the surface with a splash and doing some laps. He sliced effortlessly through the water, like a bird in the sky. Roxas caught sight of his grinning face when he passed and noted than the merman seemed happier than last time, he chalked it up to the larger tank and fresh air. He sat down on the first row of bleachers, wary of being splashed and called out to the redhead.

"Cherry!" The merman came over and rapped his knuckles on the glass as if to say 'I'm here!'

"So, you're a lot happier here, right?" Cherry didn't reply of course, but instead bit his lip with a sharp, pointed fang.

"It's a lot bigger." Roxas encouraged, but the merman just shrugged an uncaring shoulder. The teen tried again

"At least you're outside now." The merman huffed and pointed up at cover above them. "Yeah, I guess you can't really tell…" Cherry sighed before submerging again. Roxas stared at the smooth water, unable to see the merman from that angle.

He almost had a heart-attack when the wily merman abruptly leapt up with a splash to beach himself on the flat incline. He lay on his stomach, facing away from the blonde, with his chin nonchalantly propped up on his palms.

"Wow…" Roxas said slowly. "I guess you like that new beaching flat at least." The redhead didn't respond, but jerkily raised and lowered his dorsal fin uneasily as if it was a sail, much like the way one might fiddle with their fingers in nervousness.

The blonde teen was suddenly struck by just how easily it would be for him to open the unlocked gate and stroll over to the employee area, where the beaching flat was. Although there was typically a guard blocking it during shows, nothing was currently stopping him from going and interacting with the merman. He quickly dismissed the thought however. _Touching him through a grate is one thing, but actually walking over there all vulnerable? What if he drowns me? Didn't they say that his spines were venomous? _The blonde shuddered. _Won't be doing that any time soon._

The two stayed in comfortable silence for a while, the only sound being soft splatters as the merman lightly beat his tail in the puddles covering the flat. Roxas sighed.

"Cherry?" The redhead glanced over shoulder and looked at him expectantly.

"Can I ask you something?" he paused briefly, before giving a curt nod confirming that he understood. He then flattened his dorsal fin against his back and rolled over to face the other. In light of his acknowledgement, the junior chose to reword his question.

"You can speak English, can't you?" The redhead's face was carefully blank, devoid of any emotion or response.

"I mean," The blonde stood up and leaned against the glass, beginning to get riled "It's obvious that you understand me. You respond correctly and stuff. So why don't you ever talk back?" The merman's face remained a cautious mask, revealing nothing. He then closed his eyes and resolutely looked away. Even without him speaking, the message was clear: Conversation Over.

Roxas smacked the glass in frustration.

"Fine! I don't care!" He opened the employee gate just enough for him to reach through and turn off the lights, before locking the doorway and heading towards the exit. _If that's the way he wants to be…_

He had almost reached the entrance when a pleading voice called out from behind, bringing him to a halt. "Roxas!"

_To be continued…._

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**Author's notes:**

What's this? Cherry can speak? More likely, it's just some human night janitor telling him that he dropped something….lol Wait and see!

**Factlets:** ~Xigbar and Demyx both have 3 actual quotes from kh2 in here. Try to find all 6!

~Does anybody remember Riku & Rox's "first date" mentioned in ch.1? Roxas's description of the events here were quite accurate but despite what Rox says, I think those 3 _do_ count as dates! lol

~I roughly based Demyx's character on his actual character from 356/2 days. Looks out only for himself and works hard to avoid work!

~Did anybody catch Tako's Spongebob reference?

~The name of the ice cream place, Fryst Fisk, means "Frozen Fish" in Swedish! I don't know how to pronounce it, but I sure have fun trying!

**Quiz Time! **Without going back and looking: How many cookies were in the bags Kairi gave Roxas/Sora? What kind were they?

Tic…tic….tic….TIME'S UP! Did you get one right? I sure didn't, I had to go back and check. In my own story! I've always sucked when it comes to miniscule details. Besides, the beginning of this chapter was pretty filler-y anyways, and it's hard to remember that kind of stuff! Next time, I'll choose something more obvious…for my own sake! D8

BTW remember when I said that I was getting portacath removal surgery? Well, it fell through then, so I'm having it done this Friday. (Shouldn't delay the next update.)

I wonder if anybody can tell me why it's _always_ Friday? Seriously, out of my 5 surgeries, 4 of them have been on Fridays! The only reason I can think of is that doctors hate it when people have relaxing weekends….Speaking of weekends, The guy that's supposed to fix my computer/phoneline won't be coming over coming over until Saturday. So I won't be able to reply to your reviews until at least then! Sorry! but don't let that stop you from reviewing though! I know it's been a while, but I hope I didn't lose any of you in my absence! *hugs*

PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME HOW YOU FELT ABOUT THIS CHAPTER!

*end of insanely long AN* You get Fishsicles from Fryst Fisk if you read this far!


	4. The Discussion

**Author's notes:**

Like always, I want to give a super big hug to all of my reviewers, new and old! I was surprised at all of the positive feedback, it was so awesome! *glomps you all* Plus, Jaike Kyr and Shironami-Whitewave get double the glomps for reviewing every chapter. ;p

And special thanks to all the nice people who wished me good luck for my surgery! It went very smoothly, and at about 20 minutes long, it was the quickest one I've ever had! (The longest was about 3 hours, but they all feel the same to me! XD) It was also the only surgery I've ever had where they started prepping me when I wasn't conked out yet. As in, gown came half off in front of 7 male doctors. (Including two cute ones and one creepy, old man.) while I was still awake! I just about _died_….D'X Also, the nurse that started my IV in the beginning, she was all *stab* "….Oopsies! That wasn't a vein!" So, she had to poke me again! (Fun stuff, yes?) lol I'm still covered in betadine, it's this gross antiseptic that they slather you with before cutting you open. I swear, it takes weeks to come off! Last time it was all orange and it looked like a failed spray-tanning experiment. This time, it's yellow and I look like I have sickly, sallow skin. I can't win! D'=

Good news though: I finished treatment in April and now that my portacath's gone, that means no more surgeries! YAYS! *distributes party favors* I still have daily medicine and monthly blood tests/PET scans, but those are nothing~ _Nothing_! *is very happy* PARTY TIME! This could just be vicodin induced giddiness though…If this chapter seems a lil' sloppy or has more mistakes than normal, blame it on the pain-killers! (Sorry)

So, without further ado,

ON WITH THE SHOW!

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Roxas whipped around in shock. "Wha…?" The blonde scanned the area carefully, searching for the owner of the mysterious voice. However, the enclosure remained empty aside from him and Cherry. The merman hadn't moved, he was still innocently sitting on the flat looking no different than before. The junior narrowed his eyes at the other through the dark.

"Did you just speak?" the redhead frowned slightly and tilted head as if to ask, _Who? Me? _The blonde wasn't about to fall for the act though and jabbed finger at him.

"You did, didn't you!" Cherry glanced away, covering it up shyly by pretending to scratch his cheek. The blonde also noticed him doing the same nervous gesture as earlier, raising and lowering his dorsal fin as if troubled.

"Hey!" The student shouted, stomping his foot for good measure. After effectively managing to once again gain the merman's full attention, he made another attempt at communication.

"At least nod or something!" His voice held a desperate edge. "I won't be mad or anything…I just want to know, can you talk?" Their eyes locked, each staring intently until the lime-green pair guiltily slid away.

"Of course." The voice was so soft and uncertain that the blonde almost missed it. When it finally registered that words had been said, he wondered at first if he himself had spoken them without realizing it. _But it can't be… _Discouraged, the merman slid around so that he was no longer facing the other and clutched his tail to his chest protectively. The voice came again, this time sounding a little disappointed.

"Weren't you just saying a moment ago that it was obvious I could understand you?"

The blonde gawked. _It's him, he really spoke! _The redhead's shoulders slumped in dismay at the other's silence. _Quick! Say something back you dunce! Can't you see that you're offending him?_

"Uhhh…I guess I did say that, didn't I?" _Real witty Roxas. _The merman seemed to sit up straighter though, so he continued.

"but I guess that I wasn't honestly…You know." _expecting you to answer. _

"Taking me seriously?" The redhead supplied instead, looking over his shoulder with the smallest of smiles. The golden-haired teen gulped.

"Yeah, something like that." Cherry turned around again, back to the other, who was urgently picking his brain for something smart to say. Unfortunately, the newfound knowledge seemed to have killed it and he drew a blank. Not wanting to seem rude, _Too late, _he staggered over to the employee gate and fumbled with the keys trying to unlock it. After he managed that, he turned on the control panel and began struggling to relight the pool. It wasn't easy, the panel was covered in various knobs, switches, and buttons used to manipulate the show effects. _Oh god, what if I accidentally turn on the music…! _His first attempt was an awful failure, the switch that he'd flipped triggered the bright, overhead spotlights to flash. Blinding them both and giving the merman such a fright that he promptly dived back into the water to hide, after releasing a frightened noise that reminded Roxas much of a bird. He cursed, and started scrambling all over the keys in his search for the correct switch. Three more mishaps later, he'd managed to find the right one and now the tank was softly illuminated by their warm, orange glow.

He peered inside the pool and quickly found the other, not curled up quaking in terror like he feared, but rather swimming slowly just beneath the surface on the far side. The blonde sighed in relief before plopping down next to the beaching port.

"I didn't mean to scare you there Cherry." The streak of red continued skimming along before abruptly changing course and heading towards the student. His raised dorsal fin knifed through the water, reminiscent of a ravenous shark homing in on it's next meal. The cautious redhead resurfaced close against the beaching flat, but made no move to come ashore.

"It's okay, it was just an accident, right?" _His voice is so nice and smooth…_

"That's right. I don't know which numbers go with which lights." He pointed to the controls and the merman sighed. "I see." They waited in silence for a while, but it was uneasy and full of tension. The blonde stared intently at the redhead, willing him to look up, however the other seemed content avoiding the his gaze. After a while, the student realized just how uncomfortable Cherry appeared. _He probably doesn't know what to say to a human…but I don't know what to say to a merman either! _He decided to at least try though and cleared his throat.

"Umm…So uhh…Cherry-" he broke off suddenly and clapped his hand over his mouth in realization. _Shit, there's no way that Cherry is his real name! _Unnerved from his sudden exclamation and slapdash movement, the redhead drew back and warily looked him over.

"Is something wrong." Despite his concerned tone, his shoulders were tense, and Roxas guessed that the other was about to bolt at the smallest sign of his displeasure.

"No, nothing at all. I didn't mean to scare you, it's just…." it was his turn to look away now. "…Cherry isn't really your name, is it?" The redheaded exhaled heavily and slumped forward, relieved to hear that the dilemma was so trivial.

"Of course not, you had me afraid over nothing!" The blonde flushed red, mortified. Axel watched the teen squirm for a second, before giving an amused grin.

"It was a rather cute nickname though, I liked it." The blonde groaned and covered his face in embarrassment. _He doesn't quite seem like the "cute" kind of guy. _The redhead leaned forward even more with a gentle smile and spoke softly.

"My name is Axel." The student squinted, his echo muffled through parted fingers. "Axel…" However, the merman just shook his head slightly.

"No, no. Ahksel. Say it with me, ah-kuh-seh-rlll. Four syllables." The blonde lowered his hands and tried again to copy, but couldn't quite mimic the sea creature's accent.

"Oh well," The merman sighed, recognizing a lost cause when he saw one. "It's just fine the way you pronounce it, Roxas." The blonde marveled at the sultry way his name spilled from the merman's lips, his exotic accent causing it to sound almost regal. Axel however, seemed unsatisfied.

"I'm saying it wrong aren't I? I'm saying roe-ku-sah-ss when it should be like…" He slapped the water with his tail in frustration and made motions with his fingers trying to describe the word. Roxas chuckled.

"It's Rahk-suhs, but I like the way you say it better...Axel." The redhead cooled off and gave a small grin.

"Yeah, the way you say mine isn't half bad either. Kinda catchy." Roxas relaxed and stretched out with a sigh, not missing the peculiar way that Axel stared at his legs. His intense gaze unnerved the blonde, who hurried to interrupt the other's reverie.

"So, are you _just_ Axel?" With a jolt, his admirer snapped out of his unwavering trace. "What was that?"

"I mean, do you have a last name or something?" The perplexed merman knit his brow.

"I don't understand."

"Well…." The blonde struggled to think of a way to properly convey what he meant, eventually deciding on example. "My surname is Luce, so I'm Roxas Luce." He flashed a cheesy grin and pointed to his face. The redhead scoffed and mocked the blonde's earlier inquiry.

"_Just_ Roxas Luce?" Roxas just shrugged, choosing not to take offense.

"My middle name's Nyckel." Axel stared for a moment, deep in thought, before speaking doubtfully.

"I'm from the Vermello branch of the Undinė family, if that's what you mean."

"So they would call you…"

"Ahksel Undinė Vermello." The redhead became miffed when the other failed to completely cover up his snort at what he thought was an absurd name. Realizing his mistake, the blonde hastily backtracked and made an excuse.

"That is, I mean… any name in another language sounds strange to someone who isn't used to it." Still affronted, Axel pointedly looked away, forcing the frantic blonde to try once more to correct himself.

"It's true, you know! I'm learning Japanese right now and even though it all sounded like funny gibberish in the beginning, it doesn't sound weird at all anymore." Emerald eyes softened but still refused to meet the other's.

"It's admirable that you're learning a foreign tongue. I find human languages to be fascinating." _A language lover, huh? Perfect! _He took the chance to flaunt his abilities and hopefully impress the other.

"In Japanese, you're called a 'ningyo'!" The redhead blinked in pleasant surprise, finally meeting the other's gaze.

"Ning…Ah, yes! I recognize that one, it's what some humans call us in the east!" The blonde beamed and nodded eagerly. "That's right, in Japan." Axel closed his eyes and touched his chin to his chest, seemingly contemplating

"Yes, well…it's still just a human word, like _mermaid_." The last part was viciously spat out like it was poison to his system, as though the word itself had personally wronged him somehow. The sudden hostility stupefied the young human. _What just happened? Is mermaid some racial slur or something…? _The student awkwardly cleared his throat and made an effort to erase the other's resentment.

"Well, what do you usually call yourself?" The redhead's bitterness persisted in his tone.

"In human tongue?"

"No, in your native language." The answer seemed to satisfy the surly merman and his anger evaporated at once.

"Well, it's sounds a bit different underwater, but it should be like-" The warbling croon that he verbalized was like nothing Roxas had ever heard before, the pitch fluctuated melodiously but always stayed low and resonant. The soothing melody continued to reverberate inside the blonde long after the sound ended.

"Wow! It sounds like music!" Delighted, the bashful merman hid his face in his hands to cover up his blush, he spoke modestly.

"No, our music is much different."

"It's still great though! Let me try to say it now…" he took in a deep breath. "Weenaaaooooiiiooow." Even without the redheads deadpan look, he knew that his poor imitation hadn't even come close to the original word. The disapproving merman looked him over with a critical eye.

"Not bad for a first try, human, I could understand what you were _trying_ to say. You have a long ways to go though." The blonde shrugged sheepishly.

"Sorry Axel, but I don't think humans are capable of those kind of sounds. So, how do you say it in human tongue now?" He almost regretted asking after witnessing a subtle transformation come over the other. _Oh no, I've seen that look on Olette before…Teacher mode!_

"There's a lot of different terms depending on which ocean you happen to be in. In this region, the most commonly used are 'merenneito' and 'merineitsi'." The blonde's spirits fell as his hopes for human tongue being easier to pronounce vanished.

"Those are hard to say."

"Trust me, most human languages such as English and Japanese are much harder." _You're telling me! _"You shouldn't fret anyways, human tongues are almost never-" he broke off with a troubled expression. The student leaned forward in concern for the upset merman.

"Something wrong?" The other sighed somberly.

"Well, I was about to say that human tongue isn't spoken often enough to bother practicing, but I guess in your case…" He trailed off with a small, cheerless smile. "Oh well, I guess it's a good thing that I'm comfortable enough around you to forget what you are." Despite his optimistic words, he seemed to grow even more distressed. _He's probably missing his friends. _The blonde spoke up, hoping to distract the heavyhearted redhead.

"So, those words you said earlier, me…mereni… merinti…those were human tongue?" "Yes." After the younger gave him an expectant look, he continued lifelessly. "Human tongue is not an actual human language, it's our own language but using the human writing system. We never had our own writing system, but began to adopt human ones about eighteen thousand moons ago. Our region uses the English latin-based alphabet." He paused to let the bamboozled teen absorb the new information. "Human tongues vary from place to place, but they're always learned at a later age than our native tongue. All merineitsi world-wide speak the same native tongue, which is a bunch of varying sounds such as clicks, twitters, howls, moans and the like." Roxas blinked. _Did he say moans…? _He cursed his filthy mind before speaking again.

"So, that weenaaooiioow stuff that you did earlier was native tongue?" Axel chirped enthusiastically and flashed a large grin.

"That means 'yes'!" _I'm confused. _The student began to tic the facts off on his fingers.

"Let me get this straight, you have your original system and your own writing system…" The redhead nodded encouragingly. "So, why even bother learning English on top of all that?" Learning three separate languages just to survive sounded like torture to the golden-haired teen. However, the merman shook his head no.

"Most don't bother learning it. In my old …" He scratched his chin thoughtfully while struggling to remember the correct word. "-town. In my old town, I was one of just two who could be considered fluent." The blonde thanked his lucky stars that one of those mermen happened to be in front of him now. _What are the odds?_

"Wow!" The smug redhead misinterpreted his exclamation as 'Wow, you're so special!' and continued musingly.

"Yeah, it was a big deal then. But when I moved to the big erm…city, it became a lot more common." The teen picked up on his regretful tone and sensed that the other preferred the unique way he was viewed in his former town. "Oh? That's too bad." As memories became fresher, the elder became more disgruntled. He growled.

"Yeah, the city has this really big area see…kinda like a museum on humans. It's the biggest one in the entire ocean and it needs a lot of workers to translate the human languages. Plus, people who are interested in humans travel from all over to see it and most of them speak it too." Roxas disregarded the last part, having stopped listening after hearing the first.

"Are you saying that all the trash we dump ends up _in a museum_?" The redhead shrugged at the other's skeptical tone.

"If it's something interesting it does. If it's just typical garbage though, then it gets logged and either made into something useful or destroyed." The blonde blanched, remembering all of the times when he'd littered out at sea. _How the hell do they destroy things underwater?_ _Come to think of it, how do they write things under water as well?_ Axel suddenly grew sour and hunkered down, no longer talking to the human, but seemingly out loud to himself instead. "Another reason to learn English is so that in the case of humans connecting to us, the transaction would go smoother and we could peacefully negotiate for good conditions." The irony wasn't lost on the flustered blonde. Hoping to steer the subject towards safer ground and bring an end to the others self-loathing, he released a forced laugh.

"So, human museum, huh?" The merman glanced over, taking in the others wide, false smile and commented blandly.

"Yes, we know _a lot _more about your species than you do of ours. I mean, you don't exactly try and hide your existence." He rolled his eyes and flashed a cheeky grin to show that he meant no ill will from the statement.

"Why should we?" The blonde inquired innocently, truly seeing no motive to. Emerald eyes narrowed at the naïve boy before scornfully looking down in displeasure.

"Being all-powerful, I guess that you don't have any reasons to." The sarcasm bounced harmless off the other.

"But you do? Why? No, wait, _how _do you hide?" he waved his arms about, quickly becoming off topic, his brain flooding with new mysteries. "I mean, we have sonar and submarines and stuff, we should've found you guys by now!" _Maybe it's one of those government secrets that Riku told me about, like with the aliens! _The merman had stiffened upon hearing his new line of questioning and was giving the other an intense, burning stare while floating rigidly near the beaching flat. Several tension-filled minutes passed as the teen steadily matched the redhead's unwavering glare before he spoke again, demanding answers. "Well?" With his frustration reaching a peak, the aggravated redhead struck the water's surface with his powerful, muscled tail.

"I don't have to tell you about our ways!" One look at the merman's stubborn expression informed the blonde that he wouldn't be getting any answers on the subject tonight. Never much of a quitter, he pressed on with similar issues.

"Well, why didn't you try to hide? They say that you just showed up at the Maritime Nature Preserve, _on the land_." The redhead appeared ruffled, not expecting that at all.

"I-that is…I don't know where that whatever nature reserve is-" Roxas interjected, gesturing with his hands as he described the place.

"It's this little private beach right behind the aquarium." Axel frowned nervously, looking even more uneasy than before, almost fearful. Clearly on edge, he resumed his earlier nervous habit of lifting and closing the fin on his back. Looking at him, the flaxen-haired teen was unexpectedly reminded of the way that the terrified merman had earlier fled from noise and light. Even though he hid it well, the student sensed that the other was still wary of him for being a stranger and a human. _And now I'm shouting at him? Shit! I don't want him to think that I'm angry! _He forced himself to loosen his muscles and smile kindly.

"I'm sorry Axel," The other froze while he continued. "I didn't mean to come across so rudely. I know that you probably didn't really go ashore anyways. They just say that so that you become their "property" or something…It's not your fault." Taken back by the other's sudden compassion, Axel opened his mouth to speak before squeezing his eyes shut and turning away, conscience-stricken.

"Roxas, I'm sorry." The baffled blonde released a exasperated exclamation in his confusion. _Emotional rollercoaster much? _

"Why? I just said that it wasn't your fault." The other's next answer threw him off balance.

"But it is. I know the beach you're talking about now and they're not lying, I really did go ashore there, we chose that one on purpose." The human teen sputtered in shock.

"What are you talking about?" The redhead kept his eyes closed when he replied, tone dripping with remorse.

"We did it because there's these ropes around it that stop humans from getting in, so it was always deserted." _That actually makes sense. _The student took a moment to compose himself, collecting his thoughts carefully before asking his next question.

"So, do mermen go ashore often?" The inquisitive blonde blinked as red hair drooped in shame. _Mood controlled gill filaments…? _The contrite merman seemed close to tears.

"No, it's illegal. We're not supposed to ever leave certain boundaries, we have to stay inside cities or the designated paths between them to stay protected."

"So why did you leave?" At first, Axel's lack of response caused the blonde to think that he simply hadn't been heard. However, when he began to repeat his question a moment later, he was swiftly cut off by the other, who had unexpectedly whipped around and burst into vivid speech without being prompted. He spoke desperately as though pleading for forgiveness.

"My new friends and I were just playing around! Lots of stuff happened and I wasn't in my right mind. I didn't know what I was doing!" It took the sandy-haired teen a while to catch onto the hidden meaning in the redhead's words.

"Wait, you mean… you were _drunk_?" His wild imagination went into overdrive with the notion of underwater drugs. _Let me guess, he was smoking sea-_weed_! _The blonde was in stitches over his own internal joke, not the least bit perturbed by the other's annoyance. Axel growled severely over his cachinnation.

"Are you quite finished?" He pushed on without waiting for a response, reminiscing as if possessed. "They said that they liked swimming around human things, because it makes them feel rebellious or whatever. They do it at night, so it's not like there's ever any humans swimming anyway. Anyway, they gave me a bunch of stuff, drugs I guess, and invited me to go with them. Since I just moved, they were my only friends and I didn't want to offend them by refusing. So, we all went up onto the empty beach…it was my first time on land." Roxas had long finished laughing, visions of Axel vulnerable and alone in some big city had sobered him quickly. The merman in question was thoughtfully staring off towards the enclosure wall, eyes unfocused as if seeing through it and beyond. He carried on. "But then, lights came on and some big human, a guard I think, came out and started shouting. I believe he thought us to be humans at first because he called us 'kids' and told us that we weren't allowed to be there. The guys all left, but I was scared and still hadn't learned how to move on land properly." He fell silent while the blonde did a slow boil in fury towards the selfish jerks who had abandoned him. _Figures. It's a classic scenario, the kid that never wanted to is always the one to get busted… _Roxas forced his voice to stay neutral as he gently spurred the other to continue.

"Then there was a fight, right?" The question was redundant as he already knew how this story was going to end and he didn't like it. Axel huffed bitterly and bared razor-sharp fangs.

"Yeah, more came out and they all tackled me. I don't remember much though, I think I fainted…" He trailed off in wonder, idly picking at his lips while he thought hard. Out of the blue, his face suddenly broke into a wide grin as if reflecting on something sweet. "Oh, I do remember one thing though. Some idiot stabbed himself good on my spines." He completely raised his dorsal fin up so that the skin between each spine was pulled taut and the points stuck up threateningly. The blonde noticed that every patch between the piercing barbs was marked by a single eye-catching, violet spot; which was the same striking shade as the stripes that streaked his pelvic fins. Captivated, the teen almost missed what the other said next. "When I woke up, I was strapped down in a small box full of water, a fish tank I guess, with humans trying to talk to me. They kept asking questions and ordering me to speak. Then, they started doing medical things, like poking me and measuring stuff." He extended his right arm towards the other and pointed to inside of his elbow. "They stabbed me here to take blood and stuff before putting me in that other water box that you saw earlier. Then just a while ago, they moved me into this bigger one here." He glanced wistfully around his new enclosure before peering down at his arm and bare wrist, still outstretched. "They stole my bracelet too." He sounded more depressed about that fact than all of his other misfortunes combined. Somehow, Roxas had trouble picturing the redhead wearing anything, even just a bracelet. _Naked is kinda his whole style. _He voiced his bewilderment.

"You wear stuff? Like clothes?" Axel raised his shoulders in a shrug.

"Some do, but they're not practical because they're heavy and float all over the place. Not to mention, you can't open use your back fin with one." He flapped his dorsal fin to prove his point before continuing. "When I came here, I had my abalone bracelet and a choker necklace made from those aluminum can pull tabs you humans throw away. I don't care so much about the choker, but the bracelet was made special just for me." He finished in a tone so despondent, that it nearly broke the other's heart. Roxas watched him languish over his unadorned wrist from where he sat on the opposite side of the beaching flow and firmly made up his mind.

He stood abruptly, causing the merman to flinch violently, before slowly heading over to where the other floated frozen in shock. He held his hands by his sides loosely and met emerald eyes evenly, hoping to convey that he meant no harm to the cautious other. Axel scrutinized his actions carefully, but made no move to flee. After walking around the beaching port and finally reaching the guarded redhead, he bent down close and softly placed his hand over the other's. The merman's skin was just how he remembered, warm and silky smooth. When the blonde spoke, his sincere words came straight from the heart.

"I'm sorry Axel." Internally, he vowed to craft the captured merman a new, top-quality bracelet. _Anything to cheer him up. _Axel squinted down at where their hands lay joined and stared silently for a long moment. When he looked up, the blonde was overjoyed to see that he looked happier than he'd ever seen him.

"Thank you so much Roxas, I feel a lot better around you." Roxas returned the beaming smile with one of his own before reluctantly removing his hand to sit down. Although he had backed up a bit, they were still within arm's length and he was pleased to see that their close proximity didn't seem bother the redhead in the least. Axel didn't lapse back into depression like the teen feared, but instead persisted in grinning. Much to the blonde's delight, the other released a bubbly laugh and tried to start a brighter conversation.

"Sooo…You're a little small, are you young?" _Not the conversation I had in mind._

"What? No! How old are you?" He swiftly changed the subject, for his diminutive stature was something of a sore topic to the proud teen.

"I'm two hundred thirty six." The student froze. _No way! _Axel remained oblivious and simply gestured for the other to reply. "And yourself?" His inquiry fell upon deaf ears, as Roxas had tuned out the whole world with his thoughts. _Sure he's some mythological creature, but that's just ridiculous! _At long last, he decided that Axel must be mistaken and spoke up to set things right.

"You can't be that old, I'm only seventeen!" Now it was Axel's turn to jolt.

"You can't be! I've seen pictures of human infants, and they're about this big!" He held his arms about two feet apart for emphasis, further confusing the young human.

'What are you taking about?" The merman continued, openly voicing his thoughts.

"You _must_ be older!" _-and you must be crazy! _But the blonde swallowed down his retort, knowing that it'd get them no where. He chose to take a different route.

"How old do you think I am?" The redhead blinked, before looking over the other, taking everything in thoroughly. He hesitated and touched his lips uncertainly before giving his answer.

"Well…Probably somewhere between one eighty and two twenty." He nodded to himself, "Sounds about right, I'm pretty good at guessing people's age." Roxas grumbled and resorted to his most commonly used tactic. _If they don't get it the first time…it's because they're not listening, so try shouting louder!_

"I'm seventeen years old!" The merman winced at the volume, but now seemed even more perplexed.

"What was that?" Roxas sighed and restated himself, enunciating each syllable slowly.

"I am seh ven teen." Scarlet locks swished as Axel shook his head.

"No, no. That one thing you said on the end earlier…earsrolled?"

"Years old?" He nodded earnestly.

"Yes, that. Year!" The blonde reiterated what he'd once read in a textbook.

"A year is three hundred sixty five days." The redhead briefly pondered the statement.

"Days? Like suns? Ours are about twenty nine of those then." He nodded confidently, convinced that his thesis was accurate. Roxas on the other hand, wasn't swayed.

"Come again? Your years are twenty nine days long?" Axel crossed his arms, becoming a lecturer once more.

"We don't have 'years' per say. Unlike you humans, we don't measure our time in absurdly large amounts. We measure things in round moons instead." Using his thumb and middle finger, he made a circle to demonstrate. The blonde blinked as he suddenly understood.

"Full moons? I think there's one of those a month. So that means, there's twelve moon cycles in a year." The redhead scoffed.

"What it means, is that a single number holds too much of a difference!" The teen heaved a miserable groan from having it thrown in his face so honestly. _Only two more months until I'm an adult! Only two! _He sighed in anguish.

"Man, you're telling me." Axel wasn't paying much attention at that point though and seemed to be counting on his fingertips, lips mutely mouthing the numbers as he went along.

"So I guess you're about…. two hundred four." The student held up his palm, signaling for the other to wait as he added on the extra months.

"I'm two hundred and ten months old." The other lightly corrected him with a smile.

"-moons old," He was unable to smother a tremendous sigh of relief that quickly transformed into jovial chuckles. "I'm so glad! I was worried that you were really young or something!" His laughter was infectious and Roxas couldn't help but to join in. _That means that he's not that much older than me. For some reason, that makes me really happy…_Once their laughter had subsided, Axel flashed him a bright smile.

"That's really great. I feel closer to you now." He then peered down in quiet contemplation to where he clung to the beaching flat, and the blonde watched several different emotions flit over his face in interest. _What's he thinking about now? _The redhead continued his close examination, fingers tapping a uneven rhythm along the edge as he scrutinized. He nodded to himself after a while, seemingly having arrived at a conclusion. By this point, the poor human was thoroughly confused and could no longer hold back his inquiry.

"Axel, what on earth are you-" The other held up his index finger, indicating that he wanted silence.

"One moment please." Then, to the great shock of the other, he securely seized hold of the flat and hauled himself up in one fluid motion. His arms were weak and undependable, but his tail was solid muscle. As a result, it only took one powerful sweep of his caudal fin to propel him up on the shore, splashing the other as he went. The merman shifted around, getting comfortably situated before turning his attention to the stunned, damp teen and putting on a friendly expression.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to get you wet." He glanced away shyly to hide his flushed cheeks. "It's just that you just keep reaching out to me, so I wanted to return the favor." He shrugged afterwards as if it wasn't a big deal, but his nervous demeanor spoke volumes about how he truly felt being exposed. The friendly gesture greatly moved the other, who took it as proof of the rising level of trust between them. _It must of been hard for him to overcome his fear of humans, which is silly because he's obviously waaay stronger than me anyways. _It was true, and having the impressive creature lay so near just made it even clearer to the young human. For the first time, he actually took time to consider just how dangerous the other could be. Chilling information from posts that he'd read on the mermaid forum earlier came flooding back. 'Sharp fangs, venomous spines, and a muscled tail that could probably break a car in half', 'They like to seduce men then drag them under and drown them', 'They kill humans out of spite'.

"So, Roxas…" Jolted out of his morbid recollections, the blonde struggled to form a response while steadying his heartbeat. However, upon facing the other he felt both his words and heart come to a standstill. Axel was spread out loosely on the flat, and with the rosy tint on his cheeks as he timidly avoided the other's gaze, Roxas realized that all of those posts couldn't be more wrong. Immediately, he felt warm relief wash though him and he scolded himself for being silly enough to even think about fearing him. _Just look at him, he's more afraid of me than I've ever been of him._ Axel uneasily fidgeted in the silence.

"Is something wrong?" The student exhaled heavily, releasing all of his unnecessary, pent-up worries.

"Not at all Ax, I was just being stupid." The merman flushed at the nickname, turning as red as his crimson tail. _He's so cute, Cherry really does suit him._ Axel recovered swiftly, shaking his head as he cleared his throat.

"I was just wondering why you come here at night, because I thought humans slept when it got dark." The blonde shrugged nonchalantly, recalling Kairi's earlier declaration that nobody ever slept anymore.

"Well, I usually stay up late anyways. I have stuff to do during the day though, so I need to get sleep eventually." The elder frowned, biting his lip in concern.

"But are you okay staying up like this? I don't want you to get ill." Taken back by the other's interest, he had to force down the blush that threatened to redden his cheeks. _I'm not some schoolgirl!_

"I'm flattered that you care, but it's okay because I really wanted to come and see you tonight. Getting to know you like this is totally worth it." Unable to resist, he flashed the other his trademark grin. _Geez, I laid it on thick! I wish there was an off switch to my flirting! _Axel seemed elated though, so he decided it wasn't too bad. The merman then tried to cover up how much effect the other had on him by acting miffed.

"What, you think I'm some kind of freak show to be ogled?" Roxas didn't hesitate at all.

"No, I think you're really cool-looking," _Beautiful would've been too corny, right? _"-even with your…unusual anatomy." To the student's surprise, the redhead erupted into loud fits of laughter.

"You think _my_ anatomy is unusual? Really? I closely resemble many species of fish, just with more developed pectoral fins." He held up an arm for validation. _Those totally aren't fins, not even a teensy bit. _The merman carried on. "You on the other hand, don't resemble any other known creature. Seriously, how many other animals do you know that are like humans?" _Ouch. _The blonde just laughed though, playing it off as a joke.

"It's just because we're so special." The redhead rolled his eyes with a snort of disbelief.

"Yeah, you keep on telling yourself that…" He then flashed the other a bright grin and they rested in silence for a moment, content. For Roxas though, the comfort didn't last long. Looking at Axel was giving him a peculiar itch inside. The same longing he got whenever he went to a museum or fancy house; the need to touch everything, despite warning signs, just to ensure that it was real. The merman certainly seemed too good to be true, and the blonde felt that if he was to touch the other, he'd wake from a marvelous dream. _If this is a dream, I don't want it to end. _Still, the desire remained stronger than ever. The merman's sighed faintly, and although it successfully broke him out of his reverie, his longing refused to cease.

"What is it now Roxas? You're doing that quiet staring thing again and it's sorta freaking me out." This time, the teen couldn't restrain the blush that blossomed over his cheeks. "Sorry, it's just-" He hesitated for a second before boldly finishing his request, "Do you think I could touch your tail?" Axel didn't jump, exclaim, or get offended like the blonde foresaw, rather he stared intently at the other as if trying to see any sign of trickery. Roxas appeared patient while waiting for the merman's response, but internally, he pleaded over and over for the redhead to accept him. He couldn't help but be reminded of the desperate way that his silver-haired stalker often begged. _If he refuses me the way I shoot Riku down, I think I'll just crawl in a hole and die…_To his great relief however, the cautious merman had decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.

"Alright, but just a little and only touch very lightly." The blonde unhappily noted that although the other's body language remained untroubled, his eyes spoke of a different story and he remained fearful.

"Only say yes if you're completely sure." _God damn, I feel like I'm taking his virginity! _Axel seemed pleasantly surprised at his concern and carefully pondered taking the other's offer for a while before meeting the other's eyes confidently with a lopsided smile.

"It's okay Roxas, I trust you." The blonde had to refrain from punching his fist in the arm with a whoop. _Such a Riku move. _He shakily breathed out and forced himself to be calm, the last thing he wanted was for the other to feel rushed and panic. He stood up and crossed the short distance between them slowly, bracing his feet when he took the first step onto the slippery decline. When he arrived at where the other lay, he crouched down smoothly and paused for a brief moment before reaching towards his tail. Although he delicately touched him with only the very tips of his fingers, Axel still flinched away from the new sensation. _Hypersensitive much? _Roxas laughed fondly to himself.

"I won't hurt you." The redhead drew in a deep breath and turned away with closed eyes.

"I know." His dorsal fin picked up, fluttering nervously once again. A small chuckle slipped out from the student. _He acts like me getting a shot at the doctors. _More sure of himself now, he rested his palm flat against the side of his extensive, burgundy tail. He had felt dolphins and sharks before, but never anything quite like this. The flesh was unusually warm despite the freezing night air and smooth even with it's minuscule scales. Axel had yet to respond, so the teen felt that it was acceptable for him to try more. He moved his hand down towards the tip in a stroking motion, gathering a small amount of moisture as he went. His tail was a bit slimy as predicted, but Roxas was thrilled to observe that the mucous didn't stick at all to his skin, but instead, remained securely on the other. Awed, he also noticed that the scales extended all the way up the other's back along his dorsal fin until right between his shoulders. Intent on reaching there, he started to rub in the opposite direction, but was promptly halted by unanticipated roughness. Despite their size, the scales still only went in one direction and didn't take kindly to anything else. The teen retracted his hand and grinned apologetically down at the ruffled merman.

"Sorry Ax, accident." He glanced thoughtlessly at his hand, not expecting to see anything different. It came as quite a shock when he saw that his palm was coated in a thin layer of tiny scales, now clear and colorless without Axel's ruby skin as a backdrop. He gasped and shoved his hand in front of the other's face. "Axel! Look!" The merman remained unflustered.

"Yeah, I see it."

"Do you normally lose scales like this?" Not the least bit alarmed, Axel leisurely shook his head.

"No, I only shed when I'm afraid." He then hastily cut off the assuring other, "-and before you say it, I know that I don't have to be afraid of you!" The blonde couldn't help but laugh as he wiped the scales off on his jeans.

"Am I really that predictable already?" At long last, a wide smile slowly blossomed along the redhead's face as he finally began to relax.

"You know, I think I'm only one of a small handful of merineitsi that have touched humans." Roxas blinked.

"You mean it's happened before?" The merman rested his chin upon his fist and spoke pensively.

"Well, I think so. I know that we've been seen by humans hundreds of times, spoken to them dozens, but I've never really heard of anybody touching a live one." The teen nodded. He was about to comment on how he should consider himself lucky, when the full meaning of Axel's statement struck him.

"_Live_ one? You mean you guys have touched dead people?" The merman shuddered.

"I never have, I think it's gross. But you know, sometimes humans die in the water and…." He trailed off, unsure on what to tell the horrified blonde. Roxas quickly found himself feeling lightheaded, like he had when he'd first laid eyes on the extraordinary creature. Unlike Riku however, the redhead didn't seem to notice his dizziness and continued on while keeping an eye on the other's reaction. "Scientists sometimes study the bodies or put them on display in that awful museum I mentioned earlier." Roxas gaped.

"Museums?" Appalled, the revolted teen scrambled off the beaching flow before turning back to face the other, who was now at a loss. "That's disgusting! How could you do such a thing?" Hurt from his merciless accusations, the redhead snapped back.

"_I_ haven't done anything! I don't even like those kinds of creepy displays!" After seeing that the human still wasn't swayed, he continued in an offended tone. "If a dead merineitsi came up on your shore, you humans would have a field day doing who-knows-what to it! You'd probably cut it open, poke around, then stuff and mount it for some fish museum like this one!" He swept his arm around to encompass the surrounding area.

"This isn't a museum." The blonde spat. Axel slapped his tail against the flat.

"Well, whatever it is, it's downright awful!" The two remained glaring at each other, their pants being the only thing breaking up the stillness. Roxas had actually been convinced already, but he was too proud to admit being wrong. The silence stretched on before being shattered by the sulky merman. "You can come back now, I'm not going to put you in a museum." He curtly sneered the last word, but the flaxen-haired teen moved forward anyway, roughly plopping down with a huff. The pair stared warily at each other in silence once more before Axel spoke up again. "What? You're not going to touch me anymore?" That was the last straw for the blonde, who's mind immediately seized the innuendo, he threw his arms up and yelled.

"Don't sound so disappointed! Earlier, you hated the idea of me touching you!" He gruffly crossed his arms after lowering them and shot the other a caustic glare. All of his earlier fury gone, the shamefaced merman fidgeted and mumbled unintelligibly.

"What was that?" The human fumed, "Speak up!" Axel released a soft sigh of defeat before quietly speaking, his voice so muted that the other had to strain to hear it.

"You're nice and I'm also…curious about you too." The unanticipated reply made all of Roxas's groundless irritation melt away instantly. The teen gulped as nervousness and apprehension rushed to take it's place.

"You _want _to touch me?" The redhead couldn't gather up enough self-assurance to reply, so he simply nodded, keeping his head low in his humiliation. Uncomprehending, the blonde stared blankly at the humbled merman for a long while before soundlessly moving his leg so that it was next to the other. Startled, Axel glanced down at the foot close to him and then back up at the teen's impassive face as if asking for permission. "Go on." Roxas still seemed uncertain, but his prompt was good enough for the redhead, who was currently staring at his leg as if it had just grown silver hair, sprouted a wing, and challenged him to a duel. The student huffed. "What's with that strange, creeped-out look?" Startled out of his stupor, Axel flailed and desperately tried to justify it.

"Huh? Oh, nothing! Nothing at all! It's just weird you know. The leg I mean. But not in a bad way!" He withered under the other's deadpan look and when he spoke again, it was more subdued. "I'm sorry." He then daintily extended his index finger and poked the human's leg with the utmost care, as if he might shatter like glass should he press too hard. Consequently, he touched so lightly that the student could barely feel it under his thick jeans. "Wow…" Fascinated, the merman pinched the denim between his forefinger and thumb. "These are clothes, right? Just decorations? No feeling?" Suddenly hypersensitive, the dry-mouthed teen nodded.

"That's right." Axel fondled the fabric for a while longer before moving lower, down to his shoes.

"Inside here…" He cautiously poked the aged, worn out sneaker. "-You have little fingers." Roxas burst into fits of crowing laughter, instantly offending his examiner. "What? It's true, isn't it? Your toes." He scowled after the other failed to stifle his laughter. "You humans have horrible anatomy! What a pain it must be to control all those limbs at once, always concentrating on the needed movements while trying to keep balance at the same time. Impossible!" By that point, Roxas's uncontrollable laughter had subsided into tiny hiccups.

"-hic- It's not that hard really." Emerald eyes analyzed the hiccupping teen.

"Having trouble breathing there? I'm not surprised considering that you have no where to breathe out of!" The blonde tried to smother another minute hiccup and failed.

"You're -hic- criticizing how _I _breathe? Have you -hic-seen yourself lately? You're underwater! How the -hic- do you get oxygen from there?" The teen mused over the fact that his last hiccup had covered up a more inappropriate word. _Maybe it's a new type of censoring? _The merman remained unaware of what had almost been said and was squinting at the other as if he had just asked 'Is the sky blue?'.

"Isn't it obvious?" He then interpreted the other's following hiccup as 'Not to me it isn't' and decided to evaluate. "Water goes in through here," He pointed to his slightly parted lips, "and leaves through here." he then pointed to the multiple slits scarring his neck. "The filaments inside filter out the oxygen." He idly flicked a finger against the gills, which remained firmly closed. The blonde, who'd been quiet hoping to eradicate his hiccups, voiced a query that he'd been wondering for a long while.

"So, why do they stay shut out of water?" Axel shrugged before answering what he considered another obvious question.

"Because the filaments inside would dry out and stick together. It's very uncomfortable and the flesh could even die after too long." Confused, Roxas leaned forward and flipped a strand of the merman's 'hair' off of his shoulder.

"Isn't your -hic- hair the same stuff?" _Damn hiccups…_While Axel answered, the teen rubbed his fingers together with a frown.

"No, it's different. My hair has this coating that protects it." _That explains the slime. Lovely. _The merman continued, running a hand through the filaments as he spoke. "It will dry out eventually though, even faster if it's in the sun." While using his sweatshirt to scrub off the protective goop, the teen grumbled without thinking.

"-hic- Gross." Once satisfied with his cleaning, he looked up, flinching at the sight of an incensed merman. Axel arched a petite eyebrow and unbelievingly repeated.

"Gross? Did you just call me _gross_?" He then looked away, blocking out all excuses from the other. After his sixth hiccup-riddled attempt at explaining failed, the blonde gave up with a exasperated sigh. _He sure is temperamental, I guess being in a cage and getting no sleep might do that to you. Sleep's starting to sound real nice right now actually… _Movement out of the corner of his eye woke him up fully, it was the merman's dorsal fin. Just like all of the other times when he'd been panicky or troubled, Axel had resumed lifting and lowering it in a jittery, endless pattern. Captivated by the motion, Roxas scooted forward, sliding easily over the slick flat until he was almost touching the other, who had froze upon seeing the new development. The teen glanced first at the other's wary eyes and then to the spotted fin, now raised and immobile, before prodding it like the way Axel had earlier with his leg. Immediately after being touched, it flattened with an audible snap. When the teen spoke, it was in a casual voice as if they were two life-long friends who just had a routine spat.

"You're not _really_ mad at me are you?" The merman raised his fin again, although not completely this time, leaving small amounts of spine sticking up without any flesh between. He seemed exhausted as he replied, speaking in a dull, monotone voice.

"No, I'm not truly angry. Not at you." Roxas gently rested his finger on the tip of the cutting spike and tilted it to the side, watching the whole fin yield as well. Captivated, he moved his hand lower until he was touching the base where the fin merged into his back. His soft touch trigged a shudder to race up the other as if he'd received a sudden chill. He quickly batted the human's hand away. "Stop that! Dorsal fins aren't usually touched!" He was too sleepy to be intimidating, but continued his warning anyways. "Touching anybody from behind is threatening, so everything is kinda kept in front you know." He made a sweeping gesture over his bare chest, unintentionally riling the blonde teen even more. _No dirty thoughts! No dirty thoughts! _The merman took care of his inner turmoil by releasing a large yawn, displaying flesh-ripping, triangular teeth, and causing Roxas's mind to completely blank out. "Sorry, but I'm really tired. I haven't had any sleep in several suns." Understanding that as his cue to leave, the blonde sighed. He hated to admit it, but he was dead on his feet himself. _Shit! I have school in a few hours!_

"Yeah, I'm tired too." He stood, feeling a yawn bubble up all the while. It turned out to be a hiccup however. _Damn it, they never go away. _Axel looked up at him from where he lay, distraught.

"Wait, Roxas!" Distressed, Axel grabbed at his hand, releasing it right after as if it burned him. His panicked tone shot through the other's sleep-clouded mind, alerting him in an instant.

"Yeah? What's wrong?" Emerald eyes stared desperately into sapphire orbs, begging the other to understand. "What is it Axel? I'm not a mind reader." Lime eyes narrowed, boring forcefully through the other. Despite his pleading tone, his voice didn't waver when he spoke.

"Now that you understand my intelligence…Well, I think you understand that I should be freed!" Roxas swore that he could hear his heart shattering into a million little pieces from the other's hopeful plea.

"I'm so sorry Axel! I really want to, but I just _can't_. I don't have the power to do it. You understand, right?" The merman dulled, face reverting to the expressionless mask he wore earlier before turning and heading back towards the pool.

"Fine." He harshly spat out the word, the viciousness in his tone offsetting the comicality of his seal hop gait. He slid headfirst into the water, barely causing a ripple on the glass-like surface, before curling up at the bottom, absolute and still as a statue. Roxas frowned morosely down at the motionless figure and after heaving a heavyhearted sigh, he whispered softly to the night.

"Good-night Axel." He then began flipping off all of the lights, a much easier task the second time. After finishing with the control pad and sealing the employee gate, the teen took one last, long look at the dark pool. _I hate to leave on such bad terms, but what can I do…? _Depressed, he began to leave, but just like before, a soft voice stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Roxas?" He whirled around just in time to see Axel avert his gaze in the shadows. He continued uncertainly, timid and tentative just like earlier. "You'll come see me again won't you?" The fear of rejection was thick in his voice, and the junior felt a warm swelling in his chest.

"Of course I will Axel, Don't -hic- worry!" He cringed upon hearing the laughter that followed. _Damn hiccups! At least he cheered up though. _The teen brightened himself up shortly after, elated with the thoughts of their next meeting.

_To be continued…._

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**Author's notes:**

First of all, I have a warning: Don't write stories at 3 am while hopped up on painkillers! If you do, you'll get this! *jabs finger at chapter* This is my least favorite one yet, it irks me for many reasons…Oh well. Secondly, I hope Axel's explanations made sense! There are some holes in it right now, like how they can have underwater cities without us knowing, how they can write, and how they can "destroy" things underwater, but Axel's keeping those a secret on purpose. For now! Also, in Axel's world: Suns = 1 day, and moons = 1 moon cycle = 1 month. They have no year. Axel is Axel is 236 moons or 19.666666666666668 years old. And his species got writing 18,000 moons or 1500 years ago. (Math sucks)

Thirdly….CHERRY NO MORE! lol Aren't you all relieved that his real name has _finally_ been brought to light! For those Cherry-lovers out there, keep in mind that the others still aren't aware, so the name isn't dead quite yet! XD

lmfao at their real names!

Axel Undinė Vermello & Roxas Nyckel Luce

I knew Roxas's last name would be Luce from the beginning, but I just chose the other parts last minute! XD If you're curious as to what they mean…(According to Google translator)

Luce = "light" in Italian

Nyckel = "key" in Swedish

Undinė = "mermaid" in Lithuanian

Vermello = "red" in Galician

So, Axel is part of the 'red' branch of the 'mermaid' family. So uncreative, I know, but it looks neat. I tried "destiny" for Roxas, but it looked weird in all languages. I see a lot of 'Hikari' in fanfiction, but I thought Luce would sound cooler. I did manage to slip in _some _Japanese though, Tako (as in the institute where Axel's kept) means "octopus" and Riku's last name 'Gin' means "silver". Although, the alcoholic drink fits too! XP Also, Axel's mermen terms in human tongue that describe his species are~

Merenneito = "mermaid" in Finnish

Merineitsi = "mermaid" in Estonian

**Quiz time! **(You all did really good on the last one, I was impressed!)

Axel said he wore _two _pieces of jewelry on the night he got caught, one was his special abalone bracelet and the other was…..? lol This one is easier, for my sake. Yays, I got it right! *happy dances* Now, I have to give a prize to myself!

**Funny Facts: **

~I tried to say that Axel huffed/scoffed like "humph" but the spell check automatically changed "Axel humphed" to "Axel humped". (I'm so mature right?)

~I kept entertaining the idea of Roxas going over to comfort Axel over the loss of his bracelet, laying his hand over the other's, and…...Axel freaking out "OMG The _human _touched me with his evil, dry hand! Gross! Get it off me!" I couldn't help myself! lol

~Speaking of "touching", those scenes seem so much dirtier than they should be. (Or is it just me?) XD

PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME HOW YOU FELT ABOUT THIS CHAPTER! I LOVE HEARING YOUR OPINIONS!


	5. The Interval

**Author's notes:** Sorry for the late update everyone! I'm a horribly lazy person. *hangs head in shame* Plus, life's doing it's best to keep me busy.

I want to give a mega-astronomic colossal humongous THANK YOU to the 15 supportive and awesome reviewers on my last chapter! *glomps* You guys are the greatest ever and you honestly do encourage me! Plus, you give great ideas too! I already have the main plot and ending figured out, but I love hearing your suggestions! Riku's Axel!Sushi comment is all thanks to the great and loyal reviewer SaphireWhiteWolf! And the much requested "swim-party" will probably be coming up in a few chapters or so. ;P

So thank you so much everybody!

Now for the bad news….I was close to finishing "this chapter" when I realized that it was super-long and still not done! So, "this chapter" became "smaller, much more boring part of old chapter". It's basically a no-action, Axel-less filler. SORRY! I know what you're thinking "All that wait for this? No RokuAku!" Well, I just figured that it might be better than having some crazily long wall of text. **COMMENT POLL: **I'd like to know which you guys would prefer for the future though. Short like this? Or is longer okay? Your opinion is valued and makes a difference! At least I'll be able to update the more interesting chapter sooner than normal since it's almost done! ^^;

SORRY AGAIN, BUT I HOPE THAT YOU ENJOY IT ANYWAYS

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Despite how much he longed to see the fiery merman again, Roxas couldn't return to the institute until two days later. Hoping to catch the merman alone again, he had intended to visit him the very next night. Xigbar however had different ideas and solidly put his foot down, shattering the blonde's optimistic plan into pieces by claiming that growing teens needed rest to focus on their schoolwork. His unyielding verdict was partially Roxas's fault; when being questioned as to why he'd spent such a long time the night before, the crafty teen had lied saying that he'd accidentally lost track of time with the merman and fell asleep. Unfortunately for him, the grey-streaked guard interpreted the falsehood to mean that the boy hadn't been getting adequate rest lately and immediately took it upon himself to rectify the problem. While forced to stay apart, the disgruntled teen found himself wondering about the redhead every waking moment. What was he doing now? Were they hurting him? Was he scared or sad? Could he possibly be thinking about me? Does he miss me like I do him…?

When he finally arrived at Tako's the next night, he was surprised to find a certain British gambler in place of the surly, eye-patched guard that he was expecting.

"Luxord…?" The night-watchman ushered him in cheerfully.

"'Righto Rox! Come in, come in." Once inside, he set upon relocking the doors behind them. "Xig said you might be comin, he's out back with Dem n' Riku already." The teen mentally cursed, his hopes of speaking to Axel dashed.

"Oh, that's great." He swallowed down a frustrated scream. "Just lovely." Overlooking the other's lack of enthusiasm, Luxord clapped him on the shoulder and continued on brightly.

"Ain't it though? Ol' Red brings folks together like fresh pie. Speaking o pie, I hear you n' Silver named that fellah Cherry. As if the poor bloke wasn't miserable 'nough already." Chuckling at his sad joke, he set off briskly towards the outside dome, clearly expecting the student to follow. "Now Xigbah's frettin that you lads ain't getting enough shuteye, but I told 'im! I says, when I was your age-" Roxas tuned out the man's remaining gossip, too depressed knowing that another day would have to pass without interacting with the redhead. He felt inescapably addicted, the waiting was beginning to drive the obsessed boy wild. Similar to when he first saw the merman, he found himself doubting the reality of it every morning. Such a creature existing was crazy enough, but an English speaking one that singled him out? The very idea was absurd and a small, rational piece of the blonde wished to shrug the whole thing off as temporary insanity caused by sleep deprivation. Each time he considered that option though, it was overpowered by a much larger part of him that urged him on, craving more. More contact. More conversations. More knowledge. He was brimming with questions and ached for the needed answers. Lost in his desperate thoughts, he walked on as if in a trance, completely oblivious to Luxord's chatter echoing throughout the corridors. It wasn't until he forcefully collided with the now stationary guard did the spell finally break. Releasing a wounded whine, he clasped his throbbing nose. After a moment of tender touching, he walked in front of the silent other, sniffing nasally.

"Why'd you sto-Oh no!" In front of them stood a newcomer, and the junior didn't even attempt to repress his grumblings after identifying him. _At least he's leaving! _Always cordial, the night guard gladly greeted the new arrival.

"'Lo there Ri. You headin' out now?" Riku beamed, his eyes lighting up like Christmas trees upon seeing the much-tortured object of his affection.

"You know what? I just now changed my mind!" The hassled junior briefly squeezed his eyes shut in aggravation, the quick action causing him to miss witnessing his admirer swiftly zoom over. "Hi there Roxie, so good to see you! Just when I was starting to think you wouldn't show too!" _Just five minutes later and I would've been free. Five minutes! _The ecstatic senior yammered on as they strolled down the last hall. "Sorry that I couldn't pay you much attention at school today-" _I thought it seemed strangely quiet. _"but Nami sprained her ankle, so I had to carry her." Already pushed over his tolerance limit, the exasperated blonde threw his hands up as he fumed.

"Freak! She sprained it while running away from you!" The silver-haired male shrugged casually, finishing the motion by draping his arm over the shorter teen's shoulders.

"I thought we were playing tag." Snarling, Roxas slapped off the offending limb and growled.

"Don't stalkers ever sleep?" The viciousness of his tone was offset by Luxord's cheerful humming, causing the full effect of his fury to be lost on his tormentor. Riku just giggled as if he'd been told an amusing joke.

"Stalker's such an ugly word, I like to think of what I do as…covert appreciation." The double doors leading outside were already unlocked, so they advanced into the dome without slowing. "And no, we obsessive shadowers never rest." _All the better for watching your victims I suppose. _The group followed the dolphin-shaped arrows until they reached Axel's enclosure where Xigbar was leaning lazily against the gate. The thin brow over his empty socket raised when he caught sight of Riku trailing behind them.

"I thoughtcha said ya was leaving Silver." Cringing from the man's brutal tone, the frightened teen forced a grin and choked out a jittery laugh.

"Uhh, well. You know..." He withered off, ending with a terrified squeak, and scampered past the intimidating man into the enclosure, leaving the blonde junior to defend himself alone against the overbearing father-figure.

"Back 'gain I see. Well, least ya got a lil' sleep last night." The aged employee headed in after Riku, albeit more composed, before wrapping up his speech. "Trust me kid, you're gonna thank me some day." _Doubt it._ Although Roxas would sooner marry his eccentric stalker than admit it, a tiny, indiscernible part of him was relieved to have an excuse for staying home to catch up on some much needed-sleep. At least he wasn't dozing off on the desks at school, they were coated with enough drool as is. Upon following the pony-tailed man within, he was dejected to see that the employee half remained gated off and the pool dim. _Expected, but still disappointing. _Four bleacher rows up on the audience side, Demyx lay stretched out on his stomach. The young artist had brought along his drawing pad and was sketching with short, swift strokes, unhampered by the dark. Without looking up or breaking stride, he called out his greeting to the youngest.

"Heya Short Stuff!" Having heard worse, Roxas chose to ignore the nickname and simply replied back with his own.

"Hi yourself Music Boy." Speaking softer, he then turned to the shadow-hidden art model resting quietly on the beaching flow. "Hello Cherry." To his great relief, Axel showed no signs of trauma and seemed a bit happier tonight. With him nonchalantly beaching himself near humans, it was obvious that he was more confident tonight. After shooting Roxas a toothy grin, the pleased merman hooted in a crooning way reminiscent of an owl, triggering a warm smile to blossom against the junior's will. The punk musician cackled at the verbalization and jabbed his graphite stick in their direction.

"See that, he said 'Hello'!" _He probably did. _Roxas chuckled knowingly while Riku scoffed and crossed his arms.

"Oh please! The creature can't talk!" _Not while you're around he can't._ The golden-haired boy sighed, infinitely disappointed with the extra company keeping Axel silent. With the redhead playing dumb, it was as if the interaction between them a few nights ago had never happened and it drove the junior insane with doubt. The blonde internally pleaded while staring intently into emerald irises that gave nothing away. _Please don't let it have been just my imagination. _However, the apparent fact that the merman didn't understand English wasn't enough to deter Demyx from gesturing and shouting orders.

"Here Cherry! Look over here now! C'mon boy!" Roxas couldn't help but to crack a smile when Axel indulged the artist and laid on his side, spreading his arms behind his head in a classic 'Titanic' pose. "Great! Now gimmie a biiig smile! No Cherry, like this!" Exposing two rows of pearly whites, he used his drawing utensil to point at the cheesy grin. Riku scoffed, seizing the moment for boasting his wide range of knowledge.

"Most fanged animals only show teeth in displays of fear or aggression." Demyx settled down and nibbled thoughtfully on the tip of his graphite, undoubtedly contemplating ways of alarming the helpless merman. The mere idea caused the protective junior to snarl and he glowered acidly at the artist.

"Don't you fucking dare! Riku's wrong anyway, Cherry smiled at me earlier!" Unlike the trembling silver-haired boy, Demyx coolly smirked, remaining indifferent and utterly unaffected by the blonde's scalding glare.

"You know, you're right! He did smile at you." Teasing, he tapped the dull pencil against his temple with a mock look of concentration. "Come to think of it… he's always looking at you too-" Abruptly, he waggled his eyebrows as a wicked smile split his face in half. "He must really _like_ you!" The artist put particular emphasis on the word 'like', entirely ruining the typical innocence of the word, before making the shape of a heart with his hands to accentuate his point. Riku squawked indignantly at the allegation, the last thing he needed was competition for the blonde's affections. Fishy or not, it still took the form of a attractive, naked man and that wouldn't do at all! Ready to kill them both, Roxas was stopped from acting on his violent impulse from Luxord, who tapped him lightly on the shoulder once more before continuing up the bleachers with a lazy smile. _Glad he thinks it's so amusing! _Growling expletives under his breath, the blonde pivoted where he stood, choosing to boil in his own fury and visions of exploding seniors. He could still distantly hear their banter in the background despite no longer facing the immature pair. Riku was sputtering furiously while struggling to deny the claim and was relentlessly egged on by Demyx's goading jeers. "Cherry n' Roxie sitting in a tree. F-U-C-" Fortunately for the stressed junior, who was two seconds away from yanking all of his blonde hair out by the roots, Luxord quickly silenced them both with two swift cuffs to the back of their heads.

"Now, now kiddies, play nice. And watch your mouth Dem." _Finally! _Heaving an aggravated sigh at their idiocy, Roxas stole a glance at the flustered merman still staring attentively from across the way. To his surprise, Axel reddened and turned away, disguising the movement by pretending to rub the gills marring his neck. Unbeknownst to the humans, he had understood every word and innuendo that went with it and wasn't sure whether he should be happy that they spoke of him as if he was one of their own or disgusted. Confused by his flushed cheeks and apparent embarrassment, Roxas frowned and leaned forward in concern. "Ax-" He hastily caught himself. "Cherry?" _Shit, that was close. _Now seated by Demyx, Luxord elbowed the callous artist in the ribs and pointed.

"See that Demmy, you upset our scaly friend. Whatcha got to say fer yerself now?" Cool and detached as ever, Demyx held up his completed portrait with a smirk.

"I say that's just fine by me, 'cause I'm already done with my picture." _Figures. I hope he drops it in the pool! _Knowing that it would just trigger more gloating, the inquisitive teen curbed his natural curiosity and refrained from asking to view the finished work. He focused instead on Axel, still avoiding his gaze and now fretfully fluttering his dorsal fin.

"Ey, good job there." The pierced guard leaned over to examine the finished illustration closer, stroking his platinum blonde goatee as he spoke. "'Cept the details 'r a smidge too dark, tail's too fat, n' his head's too small. It lacks basic perspective and yer shading leaves a lot to be desired." _Ouch, that oughta take the wind right out of his sails. _The stunned artist froze, staring at his flawed creation in shock as everybody else split their sides laughing at it having been said so bluntly, even the merman released a muted, breathy laugh. _You've redeemed yourself Lux! _Through his cackling howls, Riku managed to choke out a brisk snub.

"You know Naminé's a real artist, maybe she can teach you a some!" He dissolved back into shrieks of merriment, oblivious to Demyx's dagger-filled dirty look as he viciously erased the defects in his drawing. Despite coming to terms long ago that no work could ever truly be perfect, it still vexed him to be compared with a frail girl less talented than him. Always a master at masking any troubled emotions, he kept his voice level and disinterested when he spoke.

"I don't recall asking for opinions from either of you." The contrast between the musician's mild tone and ferocious expression made Xigbar grimace. It troubled him to no end when the boy hid his inner turmoil. However, he knew firsthand how outraged the senior could get when confronted, so he grudgingly chose to let the subject die. Still chortling, the British guard leaned back against the rigid steel of the bleachers and inhaled the cool night air deeply in an attempt to calm himself. Once composed, he took a few moments to stare contemplatively at the merman meeting his gaze, tranquil amidst the chaos, and stated openly to the night.

"Ya know, I really like Ol' Red." Demyx, still stinging from the man's earlier kick in the teeth, bitterly mocked while he erased.

"Oh really? Well, I hate to break it to you Mr. Critic, but Roxas already has dibs on him. I guess that means you'll have to wait in line if you want a piece of that scaly hunk." Axel covered his rosy face, more mortified than he'd ever felt in his entire life. Roxas crudely flipped the joker off, stomping his foot crossly after he disregarded his gesture. Unmindful of the their silent quarrel or the perverted overtones, Luxord shook his head calmly and stretched out against the stiff slats with a barely-concealed yawn.

"Naw, I don't fancy no fish. I just feel bad fer the poor fellah being cooped up all day. It ain't right." Xigbar crossed his arms with a huff from where he stood by the gate before spitting harshly.

"Ya say that fer ev'ry beast in dis place, ya damn hippie!" He spoke nothing but the truth, Luxord was a proud animal activist and often fretted over their welfare, his compassion even extended to the minuscule guppies and slithering snails. As he replied, the animal-lover lifted his shoulders up in a nonchalant shrug.

"Maybe so, but this is a tad diff from the norm, don'tcha think? Mermaids 'r mythical, it might be bad luck tuh catch one!" Xigbar shot a stern look up to his superstitious coworker and sneered.

"Don't make me laugh! The only magic 'round Ol' Red is how fast them bucks'll pour in when e's revealed!" To prove his point, he rubbed his fingers together as if already feeling the money between. Incensed by the employee's insatiable greed, Roxas turned heatedly back to Luxord, now helping the offended artist revise his work.

"Are you saying he should be let free?" The alert redhead was leaning forward now, anxiously straining his ears for the response. The gambling-addicted man tugged fretfully on one of his many helix piercings as if considering the idea for the very first time.

"Ehh…That would be nice now, wouldn't it?" Looking for approval, he smiled timidly at his colleague who unsympathetically snuffed his wish by shaking his head gravely.

"Never gonna happen." Roxas felt a jagged crack splinter through his heart upon seeing the devastated merman deflate out of the corner of his eye, no doubt Axel had high hopes earlier. Eager to cheer the desolate redhead up, the junior desperately brainstormed for a better idea and inquired the others for propositions.

"So, what do you think they should do?" Quick to answer, Luxord interrupted Riku, who was about to offer his own suggestion, and fervently responded.

"Ya know, folks say bad stuff 'bout the gov'ment, but I really think Tako's shoulda just handed 'im over!" He paused to let his startling reply sink in before continuing. "They'd probably put the poor chap in a bigguh pool that'd be more suited to his needs n' stuff. He'd be happier there!" As an afterthought, he then tacked on. "Plus, what if dis place messes 'im up or ruins the data. Then we won't be able to learn nothing." Disregarding his ignored stalker's gripes, the baffled junior expressed his bewilderment.

"How could they mess up?" It was Xigbar who answered.

"Ever hear o' the Irritator?" Putting a temporary halt on his whining, Riku barked a short laugh.

"Yeah, that's what everybody calls me!" _Oh brother! _Feeling that the other's stupidity was triggering a headache, Roxas smacked the heel of his palm against his forehead and madly rubbed the painful area. Sharing his sentiments, the grey-streaked guard glowered down at the silver-haired senior.

"You half-wit twit, I'm talkin 'bout the dinosaur!" Finally looking up from his picture, Demyx paused his drawing long enough to give the eldest a jeering hoot.

"Dinosaur Xiggy? I know you're an old geezer but I had no idea you were around back then." The icy glare he was dealt was sharp enough to split a single stand of hair.

"Hush whelp!" The artist saluted the man playfully before refocusing on his drawing.

"Hushing sir!" Refusing to speak until he was sure there'd be no more interruptions, Xigbar's single eye scrutinized the group closely as if daring them to make even just the slightest peep. Once satisfied that he had center stage, the grizzled man began his narrative.

"Alright now…way ago some amateur fossil collector found this dino skull, first o' it's kind n' super rare. Well, dat loser thought 'imself tuh be a profess'nal, so he 'fixed' it" The aged guard added air quotes on the last verb. "-with plaster n' shit. Really, e just ended up ruinin it beyond recognition. So when da real scientist git hold of it, they name it da Irritator after it's discoverer." Grim silence met his speech, first broken by the blue-eyed junior, whose voice was heavy with dread.

"Are you saying that Tako's might do something bad to him? How could they possibly do that?" Xigbar snorted and dismissively waved his scarred hand.

"Hell if I know. I'm sure dese idiots'll find a way though. Them so-called intellect'als got as much commons sense as a nut." With his mood sinking deeper than ever, Roxas hesitated to meet emerald eyes. After hanging on to their every word, the stressed redhead had been sickened to his stomach with fear. _Poor Axel… _Riku's joking prediction as he attempted to shatter the thick tension didn't help matters.

"Maybe they'll turn him into sushi!" He shrugged lightheartedly after receiving four deadpan looks plus one horrified gawk. Axel didn't recognize the foreign word, but he knew one thing, and it was that he didn't want to be 'turned into' anything! "What? C'mon guys, it was just a joke. We all know he'd make horrible, spicy sushi anyways." Before Roxas had a chance to hurl a smarting insult at the ridiculous senior, Demyx cried out triumphantly.

"Finished!" Immediately following his celebratory declaration, the smug artist swiveled to face his earlier evaluator and proudly displayed his modified picture. "So, got anything to say about it _now_?" Roxas hated to admit it, even to himself, but from the little he saw through the murky night, the drawing was superb. It realistically illustrated Axel, relaxed in a sitting position, leaning casually on one arm with his tail lightly curled up behind. Due to the angle Demyx held it at, the nosy junior couldn't make out the merman's face. Despite that, he would easily bet everything he owned on the fact that it probably was as good, if not better, than the rest of the illustration. _That annoying dunce is skilled…Damn it. _The platinum-blonde watchman thoroughly inspected the edited drawing before shaking his head.

"Mmm…Nope, not a thing. Quite an accomplishment ya got there." He finished his appraisal with polite applause as Demyx flipped onto a fresh page to start anew.

"Yeah, I thought so." _Great, as if his ego needed more inflating. _Axel huffed from where he lay on the beaching flow, he'd never been drawn before and had been hoping to see the end product. Hearing that it was apparently flawless ignited his curiosity even more, but he resigned himself to the obvious fact that he would be ignored tonight. He had come to learn that despite often trying to communicate with him when they were alone, humans almost never spoke to him when they were in groups. He chalked it up to their pride and appearance, nobody wanted to be caught dead talking to something that supposedly had the IQ of a goldfish, and he couldn't blame them. Victoriously holding his sketchbook against his chest, the musician raised his graphite stick up in the air with a grand gesture. _I'm sure the statue of Liberty has some sort of copyright infringement rule. _"And now, time to create yet another masterpiece!" _Gimmie a break, I'm gonna puke here._ The redheaded perked up at the delightful thought of having another art piece centered around him. Once again, he optimistically wished to view it afterwards. However, before the self-satisfied artist could even begin work on his next piece, Xigbar's gravely voice floated over in a lazy drawl.

"Oh no it ain't. It's time tuh git some sleep." Demyx protested at once, his aquamarine eyes wide and pleading.

"Aww, but Xiggy-"

"Don't throw yer 'but's at me boy! Ya came ere to draw a pic n' ya did. Now go home n' get some rest fer tomorruh!" On a roll, the overbearing elder diverted his concerned focus onto the other two teens. "All o ya! It's a school night n' ya all got work tuh do!" Far from being beaten, Demyx eagerly piped up.

"I don't have any homework!"

"That's whatcha always say!"

"Because it's true!" Straight-faced, Xigbar's impassive look made it clear that the senior wasn't gaining any ground.

"Listen, ya. Ya wanna be an artist? Go tuh school. If ya don't go, ya might end up a bum on da streets singin' fer pennies n' eatin' garbage 'stead of candy!" _Is that what happened to you? _The amused junior couldn't completely hide his snort from the mental image. Still not about to give up, the resisting musician crossed his arms with a pout and spoke skeptically, rolling his eyes all the while.

"Uh-huh, and maybe a macaroni penguin will just waddle along and peck out my eye." Face unreadable, the aged guard twitched as Roxas crowed.

"Is that how it happened!" As far as the blonde knew, the reason for Xigbar's eye-patch was a mystery to all. Riku, having once suggested that it'd been lost by overzealously rocking out during a guitar solo, was quick to play along.

"I understand everything now!" Patience snapping, the irate guard clenched a fist.

"As if!" Turning his fist into a intimidating point, he then jabbed a finger roughly at the childish musician. "Listen you, I got an e-mail from one of ya teachs saying that-" Demyx, knowing how that sentence was going to end and dreading it, hurriedly gathered his sketchbook and utensils in his haste to leave.

"You know what? It's late. So very, very late." Satisfied that he'd finally reached the terrified artist, now stumbling down the bleachers in his panic, Xigbar fixed his evil eye on the others still lingering.

"You too!" Knowing that Xigbar was unshakable in parent-mode, Roxas pleaded instead for a second chance.

"Can I come by tomorrow night?" _Preferably alone?_

"No, ya'll be sleepin' tomorruh!" He softened after seeing the distraught junior's crestfallen expression and heaved a ragged sigh of submission. "If ya must, then ya can come the night afta. But I don' wantcha comin' here two nights in a row, ya hear? Ya need sleep." _Well, that's better than nothing. _Sincerely grateful, he thanked the grumbling guard before turning to face the neglected merman who had been watching the frenzied proceedings with childlike wonder. Seeing him so innocent and mystified made the teen's chest dully ache. _We never really got to talk tonight. _Wretchedly, he noted how Axel's bright reds shone like a beacon through the inky darkness, as if he was the only thing left untainted within the whole institute. _-or maybe even the world… He doesn't belong here. _After feeling another pang of wretchedness and guilt, Roxas decided to stop dragging things out and just leave.

"Bye Cherry, I'll see you soon." Depressed but resigned to his fate, Axel lowered his chin to his chest in mute understanding and forcefully prayed with all his heart that the blonde human would follow through with his promise. Not about to be forgotten, Luxord scoffed playfully and winked, effectively demolishing the tangible depression that had settled over the area.

"Oh I see how it is, say g'bye to the fishie but not your uncle Luxord." Before the jaded teen could give the gambler a proper send-off, Riku impulsively cut in.

"Yeah, and what about me!" The fatigued junior scowled, too drained to inject the necessary venom in his aggravated tone.

"That depends, are you actually going to leave?" He received a small, hopeful grin.

"I was kinda actually thinking about walking you home." Cringing at the dark look spreading across his crush's face, he released a sheepish laugh. "…Maybe?"

"In your dreams!" Blaming his lack of insult-creativity on his sleep-deprived brain, Roxas glared shards of ice at the other to ensure that his message carried over. Shot down where he stood, Riku dejectedly headed towards the enclosure's exit mumbling despairingly under his breath about blue-eyed blondes and how they're better female. _Strange, he usually puts up more of a fight than that. I didn't even get a parting remark! Maybe Xigbar's right about us needing rest. _After giving both guards their respective farewells, the exhausted junior jogged in an effort to meet with the others inside. With thousands of glassy, unblinking fish eyes staring, nothing was creepier than being forced to go through the aquarium alone at night. When he finally caught up with Demyx in one of the halls, Riku was nowhere to be found. _Probably took a different route to avoid the art-nut. _Snickering, Demyx glanced over his shoulder when the youngest arrived.

"So, I heard you _walked_ all this way in the freezing cold." The way he said it implied that it was tougher than solo circumnavigation and only a suicidal imbecile would try. Even though he never flaunted it, the whole student body knew of Demyx's Zero X motorcycle. Sleek and silent, the electric bike stood out amongst the typical cars like a sore thumb. With his weary sigh transforming into a yawn halfway, Roxas groggily muttered.

"Let me guess Mr. High and Mighty, you drove here?" The senior scoffed.

"Duh!" Roxas hummed drowsily at the retort, no longer listening. Despite not having a car of his own, he did have a license. The island they lived on was only a few miles long and despite occasionally borrowing his mother's when rushed, the blonde saw no practical reason to drive. Still brooding, Roxas miserably reflected upon how poorly the night had gone. _At least the next time can't get any worse then. _Afterwards, the wary teen frowned at the cursed words, reminding himself that fate was whimsical and loved to contradict.

_To be continued…._

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**Author's notes:**

Sorry, for the action-less chapter! It was needed for some character introduction and foreshadowing though. Lots of foreshadowing. Demyx's drawing will be popping up a few more times by the way! The next chapter should come up later this week and Roxas finally gets his alone time with Axel. FINALLY! Poor lil' merman's starting to feel forgotten!

**Quiz Time: **After Riku's sushi joke, what specific flavor did he say Axel would taste like? lol mind outta the gutter kids. Even though it's pretty obscure, I actually got this one right. Probably because I was talking about it so much! XD

**Factoids: ~**Xigbar's story about the Irritator Spinosaurus dino is 100% true! *is a nature geek*

~I was researching security guard facts for this story and found out that in New Jersey, they're all required to take the Security Officer Registration Act (SORA) to keep them from being corrupt like Xigbar. Being the KH geek that I am, I cracked up at the thought of everybody doing the SORA. See what you did Nomura?

~Lastly, remember how Demyx hinted at a macaroni penguin pecking out Xig's eye? (Yes, there is such a thing as macaroni penguins) I actually have my own theory on how he lost it in this story, but I like Demyx's version better. I say that when Dem was just a toddler, his father was killed in a car accident that also cost Xig his eye. Since Xigbar accidentally caused the crash, he raised Dem out of guilt despite knowing nothing about kids. He then quickly grew to love him as if he was his own son. Demyx still lives with his mom, who ignores him completely, but he's always welcome to Xigbar's couch. It won't be mentioned in the actual story, since those two would rather keep their personal stuff in the past, but maybe it'll help you understand their relationship and personalities more. Why Dem is so aloof and Xig so protective. Despite the rumors, I don't really see Xigbar as a pedophile… To end things on a lighter note, my computer's auto-correct changed him from "father-figure" to "fatal-disease"! lol

EVEN THOUGH IT WAS JUST A FILLER CHAPTER, I STILL WANT TO KNOW HOW YOU FELT ABOUT IT! And don't forget my comment poll from the beginning! ;p THANKIES!


	6. The Alliance

**Author's notes:** I want to thank you guys so much for all of your super-nice reviews! And for all of your feedback too. Long chapters came out on top, so I probably wont be cutting them short again! Also, since I can't reply to anonymous reviews, I want to give a specific thanks to one of my super-nice, regular reviewers, Amissa! Thank you! *hugs* And speaking of appreciation, the fantastic Sane Asylum drew me some awesome fanart! Squeee! If you guys want to check it out, I just made a DA account and the link in my profile leads right to the newly-made fanart folder! Whoot! I've always dreamed of the day when I could finally make one. ='D

BTW I didn't quite double-check this, so please point out any mistakes you may find! Thanks! Also, because the last chapter suffered from Axel-deficiency, this one has a great abundance~

**ENJOY!**

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Fortunately for the obsessed teen, his next excursion bore more luck. The four long days that had passed without speaking to the merman felt like four centuries and the fleeting glimpse he had gotten two nights before hadn't been nearly enough to tide him over. Each drawn-out minute felt like an hour to the fixated junior, and he felt minutes away from bursting. As Roxas waited impatiently outside for someone to let him in, he reflected on the first time he'd set eyes on the mystifying merman five days ago. _Was it really just this Monday? It seems more like an eternity. _Through the main glass doors, he caught sight of Xigbar heading over, having recently caught sight of the student on the security cameras. Since the week was finally over, the guard grudgingly forwent his usual lecturing monologue on schoolwork in exchange for a aggravated grunt. Forcing himself not to skip or look too jovial, the high-spirited blonde readily entered.

"Thanks Xigbar. TGIF, huh?" He received noncommittal mumbles in return, the watchman clearly unhappy with having to work all through the weekend. "Are Demyx and the others here?" Attempting to stay positive, he didn't even want to think about a certain silver-haired stalker that would ruin the whole night with his presence.

"Nope." Finished locking up, the guard spun the keys idly around his finger, frowning at the junior's sudden ecstatic expression. _Me and Axel. Alone! _"The others 're out doing whatevah tis that _normal _folkslike tuh do on Friday nights." _Now we finally have a chance to talk again! _Noting that the younger had his head lost in the clouds, Xigbar scratched at his stubble, creating an awful, grating sound. "Whatevah it is, it shore ain't schoolwork. Normal or not, nobody evah does schoolwork 'n a Friday."_ Just as soon as this geezer's done rambling, I can go see him! _As if reading his insulting thoughts, the man irately crossed his arms and glowered. "You listenin'?" Jerked back harshly to reality, the teen blinked. _No, of course not._

"Yes, of course." Not persuaded in the least, Xigbar shrugged off the obvious lie and glared suspiciously down at the blue-eyed male, who was faking an innocent grin.

"Now, I know Ol' Red's int'resting stuff, but whatcha gonna do there all night? Sit n' stare at 'im?" Not about to rise up to the bait, Roxas kept his voice neutral when replying.

"Maybe." The distrustful guard eyed him over for a long moment, carefully scrutinizing for an sign of bad intentions, before holding out the keys against his better judgment. Eager to be with the merman, Roxas hastily snatched at the dangling keys and was dismayed to find the elder firmly attached to them. As he met the other's gaze, the irritated junior had to work hard to calm himself and keep his voice level.

"Are you going to let go of the keys Xigbar?" Rather than answer the question at hand, Xigbar suspiciously narrowed his single eye and growled threatening word of warning.

"I've got my eye on ya boy. Any sign o' monkey business n' I'm gonna feedja tuh the sharks next morning." After his terrifying admonition, the over-worked, under-paid nightguard abruptly relinquished his hold on the ring of keys and set off towards his station, muttering tersely under his breath about jobless teens in need of productive hobbies. _Scary! _After Xigbar's bitter hisses died out, a welcomed wave of sweet relief struck the golden-haired student and he no longer saw any valid reason to restrain his earlier urge to skip. Thanking his lucky stars as he pranced gleefully through the halls in the direction of the outside dome, the exultant blonde found that he couldn't think of anything other than the fiery merman. _I hope we get to talk again tonight!_ Without prior notice, Roxas was subjected to an unpleasant, heart-stopping jolt of fear as a sudden thought entered his consciousness; the ever-watching security cameras and the wily guards behind them! Immediately mortified to realize that someone in the watch station was probably cracking up at his idyllic frolics, the fuming blonde furiously reprimanded himself before continued on in a more mature fashion. He ranted passionately as he strode through the winding corridors, although fear of appearing even crazier to the guard on duty made him keep it all internal. _Stupid Xigbar, as if I'm actually scared of his shark-feeding comment! I mean, it's not like he threatened to turn me over to Lexae- _Now cursing his worsening luck, the teen forcefully ground to a halt in front of a massive mountain of a man. _Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Figures._ Authoritarian and brutal, Lexaeus was another night guard, a ruthless one who often took his job much too seriously. With a face that looked as if it had been crudely chiseled from rock, the towering giant swelled up to his full stature at the sight of the blameworthy boy, his cold voice giving nothing away.

"On another illegal, late-night excursion are we? You seem to enjoy being on the wrong side of the law."

Highly intimidated and wishing for nothing more than another few feet of height, the terrified junior gulped with difficulty. _What am I supposed to say to that? _

"Y-yeah?" The deep, rumbling voice came again, looming over the undersized teen.

"I see." With that final, enigmatic statement, the behemoth guard took his leave, stony-faced as ever. Within seconds, the only sign that he'd been there at all was the cold sweat that soaked the petrified boy's shirt. _Whew, that was a close one. _Because his weak knees were still shaking, Roxas continued on through the outside doors unsteadily with his heart pounded what felt like a mile a minute. He had long recovered from the fright by the time he reached the enclosure, his heart however, had begun to beat even faster from knowing that he'd soon be alone with the mysterious merman. Once inside the enclosure, he made a beeline straight to the dividing employee gate and set to work on the lock; it took him several maddening tries to successfully find the correct key and he was getting more wound up by the second. _C'mon already! _Finally within, he set about flipping the correct switches on the control panel, finding the task much easier the second time around thanks to having remembered the exact ones from last time. With the holding tank now bathed in warm, orange light, Roxas was able to see the jetting merman, flustered from the sudden the stimuli change, churning the water with his swift stokes and making him resemble nothing more than an indiscernible, red smudge. After going twice more around the circuit, the streak slowed until his features were recognizable, right down to the purple diamonds adorning his cheeks, and warily surfaced. Vibrant, emerald orbs scanned the surrounding area, checking to confirm that they were truly alone. Once sure, the on-edge redhead switched his focus onto the stunned teen and guardedly stared as if expecting to be attacked any second. Stammering, Roxas gave a small grin and waved nervously.

"Hi Axel." Because the merman, wary expression unchanging, didn't acknowledge his greeting, the blonde felt obligated to say more. _Is he mad at me for not being here often enough? _"I'm sorry that it's been a while but Xigbar made me stay home and get some sleep." Still cautiously watching the disappointed junior from where he floated, Axel remained still and silent, face barely softening. _Maybe he can't speak after all? That would mean that I just imagined it and this whole trip was a waste of time._

"It was needed." Roxas blinked dumbly in shock at the declaration, unsure if the sound he thought he heard was genuine or just his imagination. The straight-faced merman, showing no signs of having spoken or even understanding English at all, didn't help in the least. The blonde stuttered slightly as he struggled to find his voice and verify if the other's speech.

"Umm…what?" Without missing a beat, Axel helpfully chimed in.

"The sleep. I don't think it's normal for humans to be up so much during the night, you might get sick." As he finally came to terms that Tuesday night's conversation was not a figment of an overactive mind, a huge tsunami wave of relief poured over the gratified teen and he developed a sudden yearning to leap in the air and cry out jubilantly. Held back by the few threads of rationality he had left, aided with the belief that leaping without warning would frighten the wary redhead, Roxas restrained himself and frantically scrambled to form a suitable response.

"N-No…we don't get sick from staying up, Xigbar does it almost every night." _Not bad, that makes you sound like less of an idiot that normal. _Oblivious to his dream-like acquaintance's shock, Axel glanced away to think carefully.

"Xigbar. That's the older one with long hair, right?" After several minutes passed without a reply, lime green eyes turned questioningly back to the other, who had been rendered speechless. Fearing that he had offended the only nice human he knew, the redhead was quick to supply some friendly chatter, beaming encouragingly all the while. "There's people like that in the big city too. It's always crowded, even in the middle of the day there's people moving around doing something." _Middle of the…? Oh that's right, they're nocturnal._ Slowly calming down, Roxas lipped his lips nervously before attempting the speak; the words wouldn't come the first time so the flustered teen had to try again, croaking shakily.

"Yeah, staying up is tough. I don't know how they do it." He ended his comment with a high-pitched laugh, a giddy result of nervousness and relief. _He really _can_ talk! _Pleased to see the human coming around, Axel nodded in heartfelt agreement.

"I know! I can't stand the light personally, it gives me bad headaches." Roxas smiled weakly, finding it easy to slip back into his earlier role with the merman.

"So, you work at night then?" The redhead negatively clucked his tongue as he denied the assumption.

"No, I don't work at all yet. Like I said the other day, I just moved to the city a little while ago." He pressed the tips of fingers together mournfully. "I _was_ hoping to get a job at this one pet store though." Sure that he'd misunderstood, the blonde echoed dumbly.

"Pet store?" Misunderstanding the reason for his bewilderment, Axel set out to define the term.

"Yes, it's a place that sells pets. You know, little animals that you keep and feed like friends." Roxas sputtered feverishly, lips numb as he struggled to form the obvious question.

"I-I know…I know what a pet is, but what kind of pets could you have underwater?" Unperturbed by the other's shock, the redhead began to tic off the possibilities on his fingers.

"Certain kinds of turtles, crabs, fish, lobsters, octopi, rays, sharks-" After the last creature's name fell upon his ears, Roxas interrupted instantaneously.

"Wait, sharks? Don't they bite?" Axel casually shook his head.

"No, they've been," He closed his eyes to concentrate, his dorsal flapping in frustration. "What's the word I'm thinking of…? Raised? Created? Born? Altered?"

"Bred?" The teen feebly suggested, causing the merman to clap his hands together triumphantly.

"Yes, that. Certain kinds are chosen based on good features such as fin size and markings, then are bred to produce even better ones. Each generation is even more docile than the last. They're a lot different than wild ones, not skittish at all." Taken back, the shocked blonde gawked in disbelief. _They breed them? Next he's going to tell me they have shows!_ The inquisitive teen tried to calm down and just accept the facts without any further probing, but his efforts went in vain.

"What kind of sharks are they?" Dorsal fin fluttering in minute movements, the ruffled merman looked baffled.

"I don't know what humans call them." Increasing the speed of his mighty tail to raise himself up above the surface more, he held out his dripping arms to leave a space of about three feet between. "They're about this long and are brown with clear markings such as spots and stripes. They like to be close to the floor and you feed them fish and stuff." Afterwards, he slowed his powerful tail sweeps once more to slide gracefully back down until only his head and shoulders remained exposed. Curbing his disappointment to see the merman go back into the murky water, indistinct with ripples, the student focused instead on his latest information and guessed aloud.

"They're probably bamboo, epaulette, and horn sharks." He knew that the particular sharks mentioned filled all of the criteria; they were semi-harmless, small, and decorated even without selective breeding. Axel's blank expression spoke volumes about how much of that he'd understood, but he kept on aiding the boy in his pursuit for knowledge anyway.

"The most popular ones have big pectoral fins so they kinda look like rays." Spreading his arms wide to demonstrate, the redhead grinned up at the human, lost in his ponderings. _Angel sharks probably, I think Tako's has a few of those. _After considerately giving the human a few minutes to mull over his new information, Axel spoke up eager to learn more about his caring friend. "Do you own a pet Roxas?" Knocked out of his reverie, Roxas took a moment to mentally repeat the question before responding.

"A cat, but it only likes my mom and always hides from me." The merman seemed perplexed, but nodded blankly nonetheless. Acting on a hunch he had, the teen asked knowingly. "Do you know what a cat is Axel?" Lips puckered in thought, the sheepish redhead rubbed the side of his cheek nervously.

"I think so…" Truthfully, the flaxen-haired student doubted it, but decided that no good would come out of pressing further and opted to inquire about his own situation instead. Despite being extremely curious about the merineitsi race, he found himself more interested in the one, specific merman in front of him.

'Do you have any pets Ax?" Axel grinned, exposing rows of even, pointed fangs.

"Not anymore, but I used to have a pair of turtles." He spoke with an air of distinct pride, that the blonde had often heard from pedigree dog breeders.

"Turtles, like sea turtles?" Immediately after posing his unintelligent question, Roxas groaned. _Well of course they're sea turtles, dummy, he lives in the sea! _Axel didn't ridicule though, and remained polite as always in his reply.

"Yes, small ones. Their names were Rychle and Kiire, which are basically just two different words for 'fast' in human tongue." The bamboozled teen mussed his golden hair in confusion as he tried to make heads or tails of the eccentric name choice.

"As in speedy?" Axel nodded, humming a sound of agreement all the while. "So, were they really quick?" The knowledgeable student recalled reading a magazine snippet stating that some turtles could speed up when threatened, but he still didn't know if it could ever qualify as 'fast'. The merman burst into sudden laughter, his gills temporarily flaring open.

"Of course not, it was just a joke! Those two were even lazier than most!" Both feeling completely at ease, the two shared easy laughter like lifelong friends, each secretly grateful to have met the other, no matter what the circumstances. After their chuckles had gave way to comfortable silence, the merman gave his new friend a warm smile as he held up a finger. "Hold on just one minute please." Without waiting for confirmation, the impulsive redhead abruptly disappeared beneath the churning surface and circled around the cramped pool in swift laps to gain momentum. _What's he doing, making a whirlpool? _The fascinated student acquired his answer a second later as the merman jetted out of the water to slide smoothly onto the beaching flow. Shaking excess water off of his gill filaments, Axel shifted his position into something more comfortable and smirked up at the speechless teen. "There, that's better, right?" He patted the empty space next to him on the slick flow, indicating for Roxas to take a seat. Still stunned from the sudden agility demonstration, the dazed teen stumbled over and sat down with his legs crossed. Axel grinned at him once more, but it was a sadder, more subdued smile that didn't show in his darkened eyes. "I'm so glad that you came tonight Roxas, you're the only one I can talk to." Grabbing at his blood red hair, the merman cut his own words short to heave an exasperated sigh. "I don't think I've ever been this lonely in my whole life." Unsure on how to comfort the other, and feeling that the other simply needed to vent, Roxas stayed silent. Blinking blearily at his human friend, the drained redhead eventually spoke again, this time with a tired, but authentic smile. "I did see you here the other day, but I didn't really want to speak in front of the others. They just don't seem as…" Picking at his closed gills, he looked down, searching for an appropriate word. "Nice? Approachable? Understanding? You get the point." Still at a loss of what to say, the poised student nodded his understanding. "I did say 'Hello' though, but it was in native tongue, so perhaps you didn't understand me." Finally finding his lost voice, Roxas spoke up, feeling compelled to assure the other.

"No, I got what you were trying to say."

"Good." Smiling softly at Roxas, the redhead flattened his dorsal fin to avoid crushing it as he rolled over. Now on his back, his mood plummeted as he gazed up at the tan, canvas dome that was blocking his usual view - a gorgeous moon in a sparkling, star dappled sky. He stared hard at the confining tarp for a long time before speaking, pleading voice coated with desperate longing.

"Do you remember the first time we met? You were right when you said I missed my friends." Glad that darkened jade eyes were unwaveringly focused on the tent above and not on his crestfallen face, Roxas swallowed down a despairing sigh, feeling dreadful. Axel's heartbreaking confession tore the blonde up inside, it was pure agony knowing that there wasn't anything more he could do to help other than just being here for the deteriorating redhead and watching him fall apart. Still hoping for the best despite the poor odds, the intrepid teen did the only thing he could- question and listen.

"Tell me about them." As if in therapy, Axel stretched out and exhaled shakily, meticulously gathering and organizing his thoughts before speaking.

"Well, there's Saïx of course. He's my oldest friend and lived with me back in my old town." _Talking about friends is good, maybe it'll cheer him up. _Pleased at their progress, Roxas inquired deeper.

"What was he like." The question seemed to further distress the depressed merman, who twisted around to shoot the other a wounded look.

"You mean what he _is_ like, he's not dead you know." _Oops, implying friends are forever gone will _not_ cheer him up. _The shamefaced junior cringed and hurried to express regret.

"Sorry, I didn't mean it that way." Not unkindly, the redhead lightly waved off his apology and continued gloomily.

"Saïx… He's really ambitious and always wanted to escape from our small town. When I would be lazing around, he'd be lecturing me and practicing at the same time." Lost in sweet memories, Axel shook his head fondly. "Anyway, he finally got what he wanted about three moons ago. He left our old town and moved to the capitol for bigger things." _Did he just say-_

"Capitol?"

"Yes, it's called Ciutat." _I can't believe it, just like humans! _Amazed, the enthusiastic blonde eagerly scooted forward and demanded.

"Tell me more about the underwater cities!" Opening his mouth to begin, the redhead abruptly stiffened and froze after the first vocalization uttered, struck by an unforeseen doubt. A troubled look came over his marked face all of a sudden and the agitated merman restlessly scooted farther away from the bewildered teen, concluding the snubbing deed by rolling over to face the opposite wall.

"Sorry, but no." Struck dumb, the stupefied student implored the other to rationalize.

"What! Why not?" Still turned away from the human, Axel didn't look over when he supplied his reason.

"I feel bad telling you all this stuff, like I'm betraying my people or something." Hoping to gain the merman's trust, Roxas offered up an alternative.

"I'll tell you all about humans if you like." Not dropping the cold shoulder, Axel crossly raised and lowered his dorsal fin in frustration.

"Obviously you have no laws about conversing with Merineitsi." Seeing that he wasn't getting through to the other, Roxas cautiously edged towards the merman's scaled back, triggering all fin movements to come to a halt. After an unsure moment of hesitation, the watchful teen, now only a hair's width away, gently rested his palm flat against the other's upturned side. It had been too long since he'd felt the other's slick, silky skin, and the warmth still came as a shock to the hypersensitive teen. Steadying himself, he had to struggle to keep his voice neutral when replying.

"I don't think the government ever really considered it before." The merman stared ahead unseeing, lost in his conflicting emotions, while he resumed nervously flapping his dorsal fin. Encouraged that he wasn't put down straight away, the teen continued from behind. "I wouldn't tell anybody anything anyway Ax, you know that." Coming back to his senses, Axel shot the other an exasperated look over his shoulder.

"I like you Roxas, really I do, but I just don't know you that well." _It stings, but he has a point. _Wounded from Axel's lack of confidence in him, Roxas sighed and withdrew his hand, inadvertently disappointing the redhead who had began to enjoy his soft touch. The uncomfortable silence that followed greatly unsettled Axel and icy guilt began to flood his insides. Desperate to restore them to their old, easy closeness, the merman rolled over once more to face his friend, and playfully grinned. "Buuut, I guess that describing it _a little _couldn't hurt anything." Gleeful at his success, emerald eyes blissfully relished Roxas's appreciative smile and eager expression.

"Thanks Axel." Still not used to the endearing term, the redhead found himself blushing all over again. While attempting to grasp why the charming human had this affect on him, the merman got his explanations underway.

"Well…" Their close quarters seemed to have scrambled his brain, for all he could comprehend at the moment was that the human had an attractive smile. Axel had to close his eyes and block out all human-related thoughts to get his facts together before continuing. "The seafloors are covered with Merineitsi towns see." Getting into stride, the merman used his body language to indicate cities and groups, gesturing fervently he went on. "They're all clumped so that certain towns share the same set of rules and leader. One of the towns are usually bigger than the rest and that's the one that hosts the…the leader or king. I live in that large city right now." Delighted at his new-found knowledge and encouraged by the merman's recent willingness to discuss, Roxas clapped his hands together in happiness. _Finally, we're getting somewhere._

"Wow, that's really cool!" Flushing more crimson than his hair, the pleased redhead preened as the inquisitive boy questioned more. "So, you guys have a king?" Avoiding the engrossed teen's gaze, Axel pretended to have gone deaf that very instant and showed no sign of responding. However, just when the disappointed blonde, assuming his question fell under the unanswerable 'traitor category', was about to move their conversation onto safer grounds, the unpredictable merman spoke up.

"They're called Rei and ours is Xemnas from the Tume branch of the Ríoga family." Trying to follow along and stay within the loop, Roxas posed what he thought was an appropriate question.

"Is he a good Rei?" The foreign word felt strange as it awkwardly stumbled off of his tongue and the sheepish teen was sure that he had inflected it wrong. If he had however, Axel didn't bother to correct him and simply answered with a noncommittal shrug.

"I don't really have any opinions on him." He took a moment to think deeper into the subject. "Although our rules do seem a bit stricter than most and I've heard that he deals harshly with people who break them." Paling, the alarmed merman sardonically moaned. "And here I am breaking rule after rule! Leaving the boundaries, going on land, speaking to a human-" Rushing to intervene, Roxas yelled, successfully bringing an end to the panicking merman's spiraling.

"AXEL!" Spell effectively broken, lime-green eyes widened in shock at the unexpected eruption. After exhaling shakily, the teen continued, forcing his tone to remain calm. "Isn't there anything good about the king-er Rei?" Axel blinked as if the thought had never occurred to him, and carefully considered his next comment, picking at his bottom lip indecisively all the while. His final verdict made the lamenting blonde cringe.

"Not that I know of." Thwarted, but still trying to stay positive, Roxas thought hard for a better query, one whose answer couldn't be twisted into something disheartening.

"Well…Does he have a big palace?" Not recognizing the foreign term and assuming that the human, a war-loving species, was inquiring about an army, Axel apprehensively echoed the other.

"Palace?"

"Like a special home made just for him?" Flooded with gratifying relief, the merman nodded to show his sudden understanding of the concept.

"Yes, his tunnel runs deeper than all the rest. That way, he's farthest away from the dangerous surface and any possible enemies." It took the astonished student several minutes to process the new information and when he did, he became sure that he'd misheard.

"Tunnel? As in…underground?" Swaggering, the merman scoffed and seemed to swell with smugness.

"Of course. It's so much easier to dig down than it is to build up." He indicated up at the tent top above while he haughtily spoke, clearly enjoying his apparent superiority over the human race. Not the least bit offended by his friend's temporary arrogance, the blonde amused himself by imaging all humans as underground mole-people. _Sucks for all the claustrophobics. _"The first layers of the pla-palace are open to the public, but I've never been in. Saïx works with our Rei now as a royal guard, and he says it's a lot more boring than he imagined." Roxas couldn't help but snicker.

"Yeah, Luxord says the same thing." He leaned forward, eager now that that they could relate upon something. "So, he's a guard huh?"

"Yeah, that's why he moved to Ciutat, to pursue his dream-job. I…" As if confessing to a grave crime, the redhead fidgeted fearfully. "I felt so lost without him though. I'm so used to having him around to keep me in line and stuff that I kinda-" Glancing away in disgrace, he lowered his voice so that the junior had to strain to hear what he said next. "Followed him." _No wonder he was so uncertain in the new place. _As all the pieces came together, Roxas supplied what he assumed was the next action.

"So, he got mad?"

"Not at all, he's a good person …." Without warning, the dissatisfied redhead huffed irritably a second later. "The problem is me though, I couldn't really make it in the big city; there's not a lot of jobs available and whenever there is one, there's always more-qualified people trying to get them. Until I can get one, I'm stuck living at Saïx's place."

"Which is why you wanted a job at that pet shop, right?" The merman nodded gloomily.

"That's what I was hoping." Sighing, the merman tapping his fingers against his chest thoughtfully in an uneasy rhythm. "I probably should return home, but I don't want to be all by myself."

"Don't you have other friends?" Axel rolled his eyes in an exaggerated display as he mocked.

"Oh sure, you mean like those pleasant guys I was with when I got captured?" Roxas winced, hating to see the redhead so down. "I have a lot of friendly acquaintances, but Saïx is pretty much my only close friend. He's like a big brother to me." Abruptly growing sober, he spoke with fear lacing his voice. "I really hope that I get to see him again, we fought that night before I left. It was my fault, I was just being stupid. The only reason why I hung out with those guys in the first place was just because he'd always told me not to. I was hurt and angry so I deliberately disobeyed him just to make him mad." Smiling bitterly, he concluded. "I guess that getting caught by humans is my punishment." Choosing to ignore the last comment, the snooping teen pried farther.

"What was the fight about" The redhead squirmed in discomfort and desperately avoided answering.

"You're a nosy little human, aren't you?" Sensing that the elder was hedging on purpose, Roxas decided to give him some space and simply encourage him instead.

"Friend's argue all the time, Ax. It doesn't mean anything. I'm sure that he'll be so happy to see you again, he'll forget all about it!" The merman relaxed, the beginnings of a smile stretching across his face while the optimistic blonde attempted to switch the subject to something safe, one that couldn't sadden the other. _I don't need him spiraling anymore. _

"So, uhhh…" He glanced around, searching for a bright idea to cheer Axel up. Unfortunately, everything around them in the immediate area were human-made devices used for animal confinement, things sure to further discourage the other. He turned instead to the merman himself, who's bright colors stood out starkly amongst the depressing greys, making him appear as the only pure and untainted thing around. Finding the sudden inspiration he needed, he lightly poked at one of Axel's many fins, half of a pair that were always retracted and flat. "Why do you always keep these two down?" Gently grabbing the tip, Roxas delicately pulled at it hoping that it would unfurl, to his chagrin, the stilled appendage refused budge. Considering that they wouldn't be unfolded, the blonde assumed that they were some kind of special fins, different from the rest. Not about to be discouraged from the lack of reply on the merman's side, he pressed again. "Do they just get in the way or something?" Red-faced, Axel swatted his probing hand away before hiding his face within his hands.

"We don't use them to swim."

"Then why even bother having them?" The redhead mumbled unintelligibly through his encasing arms, triggering the annoyed student to give him a firm jab on the shoulder. "What was that?" Raising his voice, Axel shifted around so his mouth was near an opening.

"I said that we really only-" Hesitating, he briefly bit his lip with a razor-sharp fang before squeezing his eyes shut in mortification and finishing. "Use them in courtship displays." _Urk! _Taken aback, the horrified blonde dropped the subject like a hot potato and flailed in his internal panic. _I can't believe I did that! _He made a brazen mental note to never ever touch anything on the merman's alien body unless he was _sure_ that it was appropriate. _What if I had- _The mere thought of touching something else entirely made him shudder. Fighting down a blush, Axel stole a quick peek out at the perverted human who he'd apparently traumatized. Still flabbergasted, the revolted teen sat still as stone, drowning as his horrendous imagination escalated. After a few moments of awkward silence, Axel considered that it was time to put this all behind them and cautiously removed his arms from where they covered his face. Finally starting to relax once more, the redhead stretched out to face the speechless human.

"Speaking of courting Rox…" _No way is he gonna say what I think he is! _"That one grey-haired male came a few suns ago with some yellow female." _Yeah, I didn't think so. _Deflating, the dissatisfied teen sighed.

"That was probably Naminé."

"He kind of looked like he was courting her." The blonde shifted, cupping the back of his neck to massage away the sudden stress.

"He is."

"But I thought he was courting you." Scandalized, the disgusted junior stuck out his tongue and gagged in disgust.

"Are you kidding? Gross, I would never!" The pair stared intensely at each other while the minutes lengthened, Axel taken back at the outburst and Roxas livid from the revolting allegation. The uncomfortable silence was abruptly shattered when the redhead burst into howls of mirth, forcefully slapping his muscled tail against the flow at the hilarity. Roxas, distinctively feeling as though he was being mocked, crossed his arms in annoyance.

"What's so funny?" Barely able to form a reply through his giggles, the merman gasped.

"Oh, your face! You're just so serious about it!" Pouting, the junior huffed and stubbornly refused to look in the other's direction until the chuckles completely died out. With his cheeks charmingly flushed from laughing so hard, the wry redhead mused. "So, you really don't like him, huh?" He snickered after receiving nothing but a deadpan look from the irate blonde. "It's good that you tell him then, I suppose." After being struck by a startling thought, the smile slid off his face and he glanced away. "Does he take it bad?" Promptly concerned over the merman's unexpectedly somber tone, Roxas hurried to assure his friend.

"No, not at all. You've seen him, he never gives up." Still depressed, Axel sullenly raised and lowered the decorated fin running along his back.

"What a pain." Aided by lubricating slime, he ran his fingers through ruby tresses with ease. "I can't stand people like that." Nodding sympathetically, the blonde chimed in.

"It sounds like you have a lot of experience with them."

"Kinda. There's this man-" Mouth acting independently, Roxas interrupted with a scandalized shout before he even released what he'd said.

"_Man!_" The redheaded questioningly arched an undersized eyebrow as the teen repeated in shock. "You just said 'man'!" Staring warily at the student, Axel spoke slow as if talking to an unstable person liable to fly off the handle at any minute.

"Yes, I did." Shell-shocked, the blonde showed no sign of having heard the cautious merman. "What of it?" Gradually coming around, the uncertain teen spoke tentatively, hoping that he already knew the answer to his following question.

"Well, it's just…You're a man too right?" Sputtering, Axel opened and closed his mouth in appall, causing him to resemble a fish in all irony. Finally, he shook his head with a disbelieving snort.

"I don't know whether I should be angry or laughing." Now feeling very stupid, Roxas chewed the inside of his cheek in a vain effort to get his mind off his humiliation and prevent a blush.

"Sorry."

"Do I look like a female?" _Yes, actually._

"No, of course not." Betraying his genuine opinion, he grinned, wide and false. "I was just wondering because you said something about a guy liking you." As soon as the words passed through his lips, he realized with an unpleasant jolt that being liked by someone of the same gender doesn't define anyone's sexual orientation. From the way it sounded, Axel wasn't even that keen on the attention provided from the man. _Maybe he dislikes the guy for being gay? _For reasons unknown, the thought triggered a strangling fist to clench the junior's heart in a death-grip. Ignorant of the other's inner turmoil, the merman nodded understandably.

"Yeah, I can see why you might wonder then. But no, I'm male. Very much so thank you." He smirked vainly, flashing rows of gleaming fangs, and raised his all of his fins in a proud display. Now that they were unfurled, the blonde noted that the particular fins he'd questioned earlier were dappled with round, violet spots instead of the typical striping bands. _Is that supposed to be a turn-on? He looks like an overgrown peacock. _Done flaunting, the smug redhead languidly retracted his fins before unhurriedly beginning an explanation.

"You see, unlike with you humans, who have a pretty even balance, there's a sharp decrease of females in our species. Only one for about every ten males." The junior blinked.

"Wait, really?"

"Yes, and since that's not nearly enough to go around, only the real high-up, important people get to court females while the rest of us just-" He raised one shoulder in a casual shrug. "Court each other." After being met with stunned silence, the unnerved merman panicked and hastily added. "It's not a bad thing! Lots of people even say it's better because males aren't as…as…." He frantically scrambled his brain for a fitting English saying. "Hard to please." Slowly beginning to wrap his head around the foreign concept, Roxas spoke doubtfully.

"So it's normal, this man-on-man courting thing?" Nodding, the redhead attempted to clarify more thoroughly.

"Yes, it's like closer than usual best friends who do some…" He paused in embarrassment, unsure how to appropriately word the next phrase without disgusting his new friend. "Certain things in between."

"Oh." The elder's expression said it all and the flustered blonde was quick to guess what those 'certain things' were. Oblivious to the teen's perverted thoughts, Axel continued shakily, fearful of rejection.

"I know that it's not very common in humans, so does it-I mean, do you…?" Unable to finish, the rattled merman simply gestured at the younger student.

"I don't think there's anything wrong with it." Folding his legs against his chest, the blushing teen looked down to hide his flaming cheeks and spoke into his knees, quiet voice muffled. "If the right guy came along, I wouldn't mind going out with him. Even if the others think it's weird." Pleased at the heartfelt answer, Axel beamed cheerfully.

"Good, Roxas. I'm so glad that you have the freedom to choose like that."

"Don't you?"

"Not as much." He cocked his head to the side with a frown. "Remember what we were talking about before? Pushy people who try to force courtship upon you." Blushing from the frank way the statement was worded, the Roxas mumbled timidly.

"Yeah, I guess we did drift off from the original subject a bit. You were saying that some" Hesitating, he harshly emphasized the next word. "_man_ won't leave you alone." The merman nodded.

"That's right, he's so…" He made an angry hand gesture that quickly transformed into a clenched fist. "cocky and condescending." He turned away to glare acidly at the far-off enclosure wall. "He has a lot to be confident about - a great job, good looks, lots of money. He comes from a very famous and powerful family. I just don't _like_ him though." Crossing his arms, he heatedly finished with an aggravated huff, causing the blonde to wince.

"Can't you just complain to someone if he's harassing you?" He knew that he wasn't one to talk, since he'd personally never reported Riku despite lots of encouragement from his friends. Tattling just seemed childish and he had never liked the idea of whining to adults for fixing personal problems. Smiling bitterly, Axel shook his head no.

"That's what I mean about the freedom to choose. I don't know exactly how it goes with humans, but for merineitsi, it's all about rank. People with higher rank can easily force you into a relationship, they make it so you can't refuse." Outraged, Roxas gaped in shock at the injustice.

"That's so not fair!" Shooting him a scolding look, Axel wagged him a reprimanding finger as he gently admonished.

"It's our culture human. Even if you don't like it, you must respect it." Cobalt eyes hardened into chips of ice.

"Do _you_ like it?" He flapped his dorsal fin once in discomfort before answering.

"Can't say I do, but it's really not as bad as you make it seem. People don't force others to be with them if they're hated so. Who would want to be stuck with someone that doesn't even like you?"

"Well, you say that you don't like him." Immediately uncomfortable, the merman nervously scratched the back of his neck.

"It's very complicated at the moment, I'm uncertain about a lot of things." Roxas puckered his brow in confusion.

"Didn't he force you to be with him?"

"Well, he never said it outright, but that's pretty much it." The student huffed.

"See! I still think it's a disgusting rule."

"Well, there's a lot of good people out there who wouldn't force it even if they could." Spirits falling, Axel softly slapped the flow with his tail in an attempt to soothe and sighed mournfully. "Good people who just want to be with someone due to mutual attraction." He slumped flat against the flow as he wrapped up. "People like Saïx." Jumping in shock, the junior gawked as he struggled to understand the situation at hand.

"Saïx! You mean your friend Saïx?" Choosing not to answer, Axel pointedly looked away. Several minutes passed before Roxas finally grasped the fact that he was being ignored. Miffed, the peeved teen reached over to grab the merman's shoulder and gave him a firm shake. "Hey, I know you heard me!" After an over-the-top sigh of defeat, the redhead gave in and evaluated on his circumstances.

"My fight with Saïx… It was because he asked me to be his mate." _Geez, he's pretty popular! _For some reason, the sudden recognition made Roxas feel just a bit smaller, he felt a unfamiliar twinge of jealousy as Axel continued. "He caught me by complete surprise, I really had no idea. I mean - I had noticed that he'd been acting different since the move, but I just thought he was mad at me for clinging and holding him back. " Pouting, the redhead drew an invisible picture on the slick beaching flow with his finger, tracing out words seen only by him. "I turned him down." Lime-green eyes disappeared beneath heavy lids and the remorseful merman seemed to retract into himself with shame. "He's smart and great and protective and has a nice job now but…" He sighed and all of his joy left with the exhaled breath. "I just don't see him like that." Still feeling undersized and disgruntled for reasons unknown, the bowled-over student, who was never good at dealing with emotions in the first place, struggled to form fitting feedback.

"It's okay Axel." As if pained, the distressed merman bit his lower lip with a grimace.

"No, no it isn't! I made him real mad that night. I hope that-" His expression grew glum and he continued on quieter, enunciating each dismal word with powerful meaning and grim hope. "If I ever go home, he forgives me and things will just go back to the way they used to be." He spoke despairingly, as if reiterating a depressingly impossible dream, and it all made the blonde's chest ache agonizingly.

"Axel." Remaining motionless, jade eyes hopelessly met his own. "When you _do_ go back, things will be good again." The simple sentence was blunt, as if trying to make a point to a child, but it did the trick perfectly. Drained, the redhead gave a feeble grin as all of his anguish and sorrow were lifted away. Despite his friend's newfound happiness, the junior became disheartened after mentioning Axel leaving. Suddenly, he found himself torn between keeping the merman as a miserable captive or having him return home merrily, never to see him or another human again. _God, I'm such a selfish ass. _Lost in his self-destructive thoughts, the distracted teen remained unaware of the elder's discourse until being lightly tapped on his resting hand. "Sorry, what was that?" Wearily smiling, the redhead shook his head with a hushed snigger.

"No problem, I was just rambling. I was wondering why those two are even interested in me anyways, since I'm pretty far below them in nearly all aspects." Truly baffled, the blonde blinked.

"Why wouldn't they want you? You're a great guy." Disbelieving, Axel shot him a incredulous look.

"You don't have to say that just because you think it's what I want to hear." Willing the other to understand, the persistent student shook his head adamantly.

"No, I'm serious Axel. You're very friendly and super smart. Plus, I don't know about mertin…merineit…erm, merintei-"

"Merineitsi."

"Yeah, that. I don't know their standards, but…" Cringing, he had to steel himself before boldly diving in to speak the next words. "You're pretty attractive as far as humans go."

"Really?" The flattered merman seemed to glow with delight, his cheeks rosily tinged in his embarrassment. He wasn't the only one taken back by the declaration though, Roxas himself was also red-faced and flustered. _Did I really just say that! I hope he doesn't take it the wrong way or anything. Attractive or not, he's still a different species, no matter how much I may wish otherwise. _Now preening, the appreciative redhead flashed the teen a wide grin.

"Thanks."

"I'm sure you'll find somebody you like soon." The redhead's purple-marked face grew closed as he thought deeply. When he spoke next, he kept his melancholic words slow and deliberate.

"I'm not so sure. People say that when you're attracted to someone, you feel comfortable and happy for no reason." Unconvinced, he shook his head with a scowl. "But I've never felt like that with anyone before, so I wonder if…maybe something's wrong with me." The blonde jokingly pointed to himself.

"You don't feel comfortable around me?" With a small smirk playing across his lips, the merman chuckled affectionately.

"I feel _very_ comfortable around you Rox. You're a great human, especially when compared to most." _Is that a compliment or insult? _As his warm expression morphed into something more quizzical, the redhead propped his chin up on a fist and inquired. "So, what about you? You're of age, do you have a mate?"

"No, but I'm looking." Speaking from the bottom of his heart, Axel smiled softly at the other.

"I hope you find someone great." Completely out of the blue, all of the repressed tension and bottled up laughter came bursting out of the crazed junior as he cracked up, laughing excessively with perturbed shrieks of mirth. _I can't believe that of all the things, we're discussing relationship problems! _The merman tilted his head to the side, perplexed by the seemingly random outburst. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing Ax, nothing at all." Chuckles dying, the pair then left that subject behind to converse about other things. Due to his earlier concerns of being a traitor, Axel avoided any further discussions about his race. Roxas had no such qualms however and was more than happy to fill the silence with idle chatter about his dry, human world. The blonde explained modern technology and how their government operated, how they communicated and traveled, and how iron boats floated and steel planes flew. To his infinite delight, the knowledge-hungry merman reacted with amazement and awe upon learning about ordinary things the blonde found mundane. Axel was insatiably curious and at his insistence, Roxas described more of his personal life about his friends, their wily antics, the school, and all it's evil teachers. Upon watching Axel's enchanted expressions of wonder and astonishment, the teen always felt a great swell of pride as if he had done something marvelous. Eventually, the canvas dome above began to lighten with the sun's first rays, triggering the weary but satisfied blonde to take his leave. "I'd better get going now, Xigbar's probably going to shoo me out any second." Scarlet locks forlornly drooped, but the redhead nodded in sullen understanding.

"Of course, even with two days out of school, you still need your rest." _He sure picked up the weekend concept fast. _Emerald orbs gratefully met sapphire as the merman smiled sincerely. "Thank you so much for visiting and talking Roxas, it really helps." As he stood, the teen miserably gave some thought on how heart-wrenchingly honest that statement was. Although he hadn't spoke about his enigmatic life underwater, Axel had told much about the scientist's treatment of him here in captivity. He related it to being in prison, saying that the 'wardens' were terrifying and seemed sadistic, even if they didn't mean to be. Both feared for his future, for despite it never being said verbally by either, it was painfully clear that the pitiful merman had lost weight and was slowly deteriorating bit by bit. "Will you come back to visit me again?" Roxas mustered up all his optimism and transferred it to a beaming, sure to encourage smile before vowing.

"Of course, I always will."

_To be continued…_

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**Author's notes:**

Yay for bond-strengthening through awkward relationship talks! In case it wasn't clear, Axel was being "courted" by two different guys, if you read this story's description in the first chapter, you'll find out who the other is. I loved the idea of undersea pets the most, it's just too cute imagining them walking their pet shark! XD I see Axel's turtles as Kemp's Ridley turtles, which are the smallest living sea turtle. Ax probably had a small house/cave and therefore needed small, low-maintenance pets.

Translations courtesy of Google Translator. Like always, please point out any mistakes if you happen to know the language!

Ciutat = 'Town/city' in Catalan. Even though it's the capitol, I just named it town. *is lame*

Rei = 'King' in dozens of languages such as Catalan, Galician, Portuguese ect, ect.

Tume = 'Dark' in Estonian. Reminds me of tomb. Pretty freaky.

Ríoga = 'Royal' in Irish. So, Xemnas is from the 'dark' branch of the 'royal' family. Scary, but it fits perfectly!

**Quiz time: **What did his turtles' names mean in English?

I actually got this one correct! Maybe that means my memory isn't as bad as I thought…or maybe I just need harder quizzes! As for their actual names, Rychle is Czech and Kiire is Estonian.

This chapter was all dialogue and no action, but the next is looking to be the opposite and has a lot more…touching. lol I just know you guys are looking forward to that.

IF YOU LIKED IT, PLEASE LET ME KNOW! IF YOU DIDN'T, TELL ME WHY SO THAT I CAN IMPROVE! THANK YOU!


	7. The Challenge

**_Author's notes:_** Thank you, Thank you, Thank you everybody for the awesome reviews! You guys are the best and you know that I appreciate it! *hugs* Also, in my last little Comment Poll, most of you guys said you preferred long chapters, so you should love this one-shot length thing! XD (Speaking of long, I trimmed down my previous A.N.s a wee bit)

Lastly, did you know? Cherries, among certain other fruits, have toxic pits. You can actually get sick if you eat a lot (a ton) and the risk increases if you chew them. Keeping that in mind~

HAPPY READING!

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Squinting against the harsh light streaking in despite the window covers, Roxas buried himself underneath his bulky, star-patterned comforter with a low groan._ Need…darker curtains! _It was already past noon, but the exhausted teen, completely worn out from last night's excursion, still hadn't gotten out of bed. By the time he arrived home late this morning, the sun had already risen and his mom was on her way home from work. Still wrapped tight in his cover-cocoon, the junior replayed the merman's conversation in his head over and over before being forced to consider getting up after being confronted with a noisy rumble from his unfilled stomach. _Yeah, I hear ya. _After savoring the last few precious minutes he had in in bed, blonde locks, shimmering gold in the sunlight, were finally exposed when he threw off his covers to come out of hiding. Suppressing a yawn, the sleepy student remained laying down for even longer before finally stretching out, ancient joints popping as if they hadn't been used in years, and sitting on the edge of his mattress to wriggle his toes in the shag carpet. _Ugh, mornings suck big time. _Another loud growl erupted from his abdomen, triggering him to crankily stand and march his way towards the kitchen, keeping his steps muffled in case his mother was still asleep. To his surprise however, he found her wide awake at the dining room table, already reading the newspaper while nursing a black cup of coffee. Tifa shot him a beaming smile, much too bright for the half-asleep teen, and greeted him warmly over her paper.

"Morning Sweetie! You sure slept late, I know it's a Saturday and all, but still..." Before he could respond with his intended retort and weary grin, a jet-black streak quickly crossed his path seemingly intending to trip him before lightly hopping up on the table with padded paws. Sputtering in indignation, Roxas jabbed an accusing finger at the obsidian feline whose pupils narrowed into thin slits, chilling against fear-provoking, yellow irises.

"See that, she did it again!" With her eyes flattened against her skull, Maleficent flicked her tail in irritation while coolly scrutinizing the human boy as if sizing him up for slaughter. Oblivious to the sudden tension in the air, Tifa gently stroked the smug cat and lightly admonished her son.

"Honey, remember what I said about your paranoia? Maley here wouldn't hurt a fly." She then began to coo and scratch her villainous pet in earnest. "Isn't that right Maleycent? Yes it is!" Having witnessed the wicked beast capture and torture many flies, taking them apart piece by piece, Roxas was reluctant to trust her mistaken claims. Still petting the evil animal, his mother gestured to the refrigerator. "By the way, I stocked the fridge this morning and I even got that salty yogurt so that you can freeze it. I know how much you like those things." Brightening up at the thought of his delicious, frozen treats, the blonde thanked his mother generously before peering into the now-full fridge and immediately snatching a bottle of his favorite green-apple soda. Just as he was about to shut the door to pour himself some cereal, a lumpy bag caught his eye on the lower shelf, rooting him to the spot; Cherries. Fresh, plump cherries, the same burgundy shade as his new friend, bursting with tart juices. No longer in control of his own thoughts, his mind instantly returned to the enigmatic redhead who fascinated him so. _Cherry._ That subject had steadily been taking over his brain quicker than any disease ever could. _Cherry was a really cute nickname, maybe he'll let me use it a bit still. _Without thinking, the dazed teen grabbed the overflowing bag and carried it to the dining table as if in a trance, not noticing Maleficent's hateful hiss or her fleeing departure. _Axel's a nice name too. Not cute though, more sexy._ Frowning at her daydreaming child's unhalethy choice of food, Tifa sniffed daintily. "You call that breakfast?" The teen knew that there were more filling items in the pantry, but he was content with his choice and just couldn't bring himself to search for them. Never one to fret the small things, his mother skipped the lecture with a resigned sigh. "Well, at least you're getting some fruit." Smirking victoriously on getting away nag-free, Roxas nibbled cautiously on one as a taste-test before deeming it alright and popping it whole into his mouth.

"They don't taste half bad." _Speaking of taste, I wonder how the other Cherr-_ Despite mentally kicking himself for having such thoughts, the blonde found it hard to think of anything else when biting juicily into Axel's namesake. Since it was the weekend, he'd asked earlier if he could see the merman again tonight, citing his lack of school as adequate reason. Xigbar was hesitant to agree in the beginning, but was eventually broke down by Luxord, who somehow managed to twist 'sneaking out and illegally breaking in' into 'a once in a life-time character building opportunity'. As his mind was once more swamped with compulsive thoughts of the redhead, the junior decided that such obsession was unhealthy and struggled to concentrate on something else, choosing to examine the back page of his mother's newspaper instead. Lisping Duck Befriends Bipedal Dog _Real fascinating. That's so much more interesting than…than…whatever. _Still unable to clear his mind of lime eyes and scarlet hair, the desperate teen tried reading another_. _Oil Spill Still in Mexico _That sucks, I wonder how the merfolk are handling that._ Groaning audibly in exasperation, the dramatic student slumped down against the wooden table in defeat. _It's hopeless, he's taken over my brain._

"What's eating you Honey?" Even with out the theatrical huff, Tifa's sharp eyes had noticed her son's distraction long ago. "You're thinking too hard about something, is everything alright?" _No._

"Yeah, of course." Not believing his weak lie for an instant, she took control and reached over to rest her palm flat against his forehead, checking for signs of fever. After a quick moment, punctuated only by the brunette's perky humming, she pulled back with a small grin.

"Well you're not warm, but you sure are acting weird." Leaning back in her chair, the helpful parent kindly offered a well-intentioned suggestion. "Maybe you should go for a stroll to clear you head?" The student agreed that was a smart way to take his mind of things until tonight and packed a few cherries along for the trip in a zip-loc bag. After his concerned mother reminded him once more that he couldn't stay out too long due to unfinished homework, the grumbling teen headed off. _Maybe Xigbar and mom collaborate on their lectures. _Once outside, Roxas had to admit that the light exercise felt great on his tired muscles and that the warm sunlight bathing his face made him feel free and alive. Unfortunately, admiring the little things in life while reveling in his personal freedom only put how trapped and caged Axel was in perspective. _He doesn't even like the sun though, he said so himself! _Deeply inhaling the fragrant spring air to empty his head, the frantic blonde decided to entertain thoughts of Sora's new videogame instead. Out of his insatiable curiosity, he had looked it up online and learned that it was a very addicting game with many different worlds to travel to and a separate form in each, such as lions, monsters, and mermen. _Attractive, red-haired mermen that have no need for clothes…Damn it! _With his frenzied mind uncontrollably pining for the merman and his rational self telling it to shut up and do something productive, Roxas was so caught up in his internal debate that he passed by a recognizable couple without a backwards glance. It wasn't until an all-too-familiar voice enthusiastically shouted the junior's name did he finally grind to a halt and stiffen, mood souring further. _You've got to be kidding me…_ Even though he really didn't want to turn around and all of his common-sense was telling him to just run, his masochistic side ultimately won in the end and Roxas looked over at the pair sitting at a memorable table. _He took her to the same exact place he took me, can you get any worse!_

"What do you want Riku?" Sure enough, it was his persistent stalker in the flesh, looking all too happy as he sat in the same Fryst Fisk chair that he'd knocked over days before. He was holding hands with a frail, flaxen-haired girl but it didn't look as though she was very comfortable with it. The large strawberry sundae in front of her was half eaten, but it was apparent that the senior, with whipped cream coating his cheeks, had done all of the eating after finishing his own. Recognizing the unfortunate soul as Kairi's sister Naminé, Roxas couldn't help but snort at the adverse predicament she was in. Sharing in his amusement, albeit for a different reason, Riku laughed and motioned at the two blue-eyed blondes without loosening his deathgrip in the slightest.

"Look! I bumped into my two favorite people at once! Isn't that wonderful?" The junior had doubts about the authenticity of his random encounter statement, it sounded more likely to him that the unrelenting shadower had cornered the girl and drug her to a spot that he knew his second obsession liked to frequent. At least, that's what Roxas believed, for the other's expression made it clear that he hoped to have the blonde join in. Growling under his breath, the hassled teen refrained from giving an impolite gesture due to the presence of children, or more so their mothers who had no qualms about smacking him with their purses. After he had stomped up closer to their table, the irate junior jabbed a finger between aquamarine eyes.

"I'm _so_ not in the mood for your crap today." Expecting loud, desperate pleads for him to reconsider, Roxas was astonished when the pouting senior responded in a calm but disappointed tone.

"I won't follow you if you choose to leave, but I'd really, _really_ rather you stay." He ended his request with a hopeful smile, taking another bit of Naminé's sundae as he did, managing to smear even more whipped cream over his face.

"No!" Still grinning, his admirer took another shot at persuading him.

"I'll buy you a sundae, I'll even put salt on it just for you!" _And then eat it yourself!_ Even without the group's only female shooting him distressed warning glances, Roxas knew to refuse.

"No!" The harassed teen then raised the arm holding his snacks eye level to the other and shook it for emphasis. "See, I've got my own food!" Trying to prove a point, he then tossed two of the ripe fruits in his mouth and swallowed after chewing only once, ending the bold motion by crossing his arms to stare defiantly at Riku who was now looking almost disgusted. Disturbed by the bizarre stare, Roxas uneasily demanded answers, his voice lacking it's usual conviction. "Why the hell are you staring and you'd better think carefully before you answer that one if you know what's good for you!"Long accustomed to threats of bodily harm, having never gone a single day without receiving them, the desensitized senior casually reached over and plucked one of the bursting cherries out of the bag before the miffed junior could react.

"Well I was just wondering something." Tossing one into what was often called an abnormally large mouth, Riku preceded to chew cautiously, deep in thought as if mulling over the sweet flavors. Outraged at having something of his taken without permission, the offended blonde yanked his snack bag away to snarl.

"Funny, I don't recall ever giving you permission to steal my snacks." Unmindful of the sizzling glare burning holes in his being, the pearly-haired boy nodded pensively, finished with his apparent appraisal.

"Uh-huh. Yep, I knew it." Unamused by the whole situation, the scornful junior sneered and derisively snapped.

"You done with your evaluation nerd boy?" _Nerd boy, really? That's kinda pathetic, not that it matters to him anyways._ The geek held up his finger and spoke as if unveiling a grand new discovery.

"Yes, I have come to the conclusion that these cherries-" Then to both blonde's utter disgust, Riku reached between his bleached teeth to remove a scanty portion of the fruit. "Have pits." _He's disgusti- wait, what? _Sputtering, the horrified student clasped his hands over his ill-treated stomach.

"You mean…all this time?" Pleased to finally be taken seriously, his chipper informer nodded eagerly.

"That's right!" It wasn't until his shorter companion began turning green did the thick-headed senior realize that what he said might not have been the most soothing and rushed hastily to assure him. "Don't worry Rox, I don't think that they're poisonous or anything." Clapping his hand over his mouth in surprise as he remembered an overlooked fact, Riku's next words were muffled from his fingers. "Oh wait, I read somewhere that they were!" Spitting even though the seeds in question were already on the road to digestion, Roxas gagged and wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve in revulsion.

"Ptooie! That's gross." With this being the final straw, the last act that ultimately finalized his belief that everything about his inept stalker brought rotten luck, the fuming blonde spun on his heel and indignantly departed, leaving the hapless senior protesting behind.

"Hey wait Roxie, don't you want your ice-cream?" Not even bothering to look back, the testy junior thought that he could hear a soft whisper buried underneath Riku's rowdy yells. "I'll take that as a possible yes then!" Paying no attention to the always ignored shouts, Roxas focused hard instead on the quiet voice, thin as thread, and reckoned it to be Naminé's either saying her own good-bye or pleading for help to escape her devotee's clutches. _I feel sorry for the poor girl. _As the voices faded in the distance, he couldn't help but bitterly smirk. _Not sorry enough to actually risk being stuck with him again though._ With his lightened bag swinging by his side, the displeased teen found that without Riku around to infuriate and distract him, his earlier thoughts returned with vengeance, forcing him to compare Naminé's plea of escape to Axel's and mercilessly depressing him in the process. _So much for getting my mind off of him. _Sighing with defeat, the resigned blonde leaned back unceremoniously to gaze at the crystal-clear, cloudless sky, giving up on resisting as he did to just let the comforting memories flow over him. Lost in deep thought, the fantasizing student received several curious glances from baffled onlookers. Having blissfully closed cerulean eyes to the world, Roxas paid them no heed and continued to merrily drown in his savory visions of tonight. _I can't wait!_

XxXxXxXx

_Finally! _After several nail-biting hours, the ecstatic junior was once more flipping on the lights for Axel's pool with pleasure, feeling overjoyed at seeing his friend again. After the rippling, ruby streak finally surfaced, Roxas felt his cheerful greeting shrivel and die in his throat, transforming instead into a horrified gasp as he took in the sight of a large, dark indigo discoloration marring the redhead's shoulder.

"What happened!" Playing dumb, emerald eyes innocently widened as the innocuous merman tilted his head to the side in a childlike motion, hoping that his human friend would just let the subject drop. Roxas wasn't about to fall for the unaware act though and pointed at the very obvious, vivid blemish extending along his shoulder and neck. "Your shoulder Axel, you have a giant bruise!" Now faced with evident facts, the flustered redhead, refusing to meet cobalt eyes, glanced away nervously while fluttering his dorsal fin all the while.

"Oh you know, the humans, they were just-" Dismissively waving his hand, he broke off with a casual shrug. "Doing stuff, it's nothing really."

Even though it was clear that Axel wished to avoid the issue, the protective blonde determinedly pressed on with a threatening intensity in his voice.

"Did they hurt you?" Blinking, the unsure merman had to ponder the question before shaking his head no with a negative huff. Not believing it for a second, the unrelenting student crossed his arms before sharply repeating his demand to know the whole story, leaving no room for arguments. Seeing no way around the steadfast teen, Axel briefly bared his fangs with a huff.

"Alright, alright. You sure are nosy." Settling down slightly, but still not meeting the other's gaze, the frazzled redhead began quietly. "I was just tired and stupid and when the humans tried to net me during the day I…" Hunching over in shame, the embarrassed redhead's voice became almost too hushed to make out as he went on. "Tried to escape out of instinct and hit a wall." His face flamed after he finished telling of his account and Roxas, heart aching for the piteous creature, rushed to console.

"Axel, that's nothi-" Despising pity, Axel was swift to doggedly cut him off, glaring to prove his seriousness.

"I don't want to talk about it." One passing glance was all it took to see that the stern merman meant every word, so the careful blonde, not wishing to offend his new friend, decided not to pursue any further into the topic and simply lifted an unfamiliar article up for display.

"I brought you something." Unable to contain his curiosity, Axel swam up closer to the side in order to get a better look at the strange bag held by the thrilled student. Pleased at the positive reaction, Roxas continued with a sly grin. "First, what do they feed you here?" Still straining to identify the mysterious item, the inquisitive redhead gnawed his lower lip with a grimace.

"Dead fish that taste awful. I tried not eating in the beginning, but…" Cheeks flushing, the self-conscious merman coughed, hoping that this wouldn't prompt another conversation about his current treatment here in confinement. To his relief however, the golden-haired student just shrugged at his failed hunger strike.

"I understand, you should try and keep up your strength anyways." Which coincidentally was the same feeble excuse he fed to Xigbar for as to why he was smuggling in food. After opening the zip-loc with a silent pop, Roxas reached in to remove and exhibit a ripe, vermilion fruit to the peering merman. "For you. Maybe it'll be better than the fish." Looking back and forth between the boy and presented item, the uncomprehending redhead blankly asked.

"What is it?" Sniggering at his perplexed expression, the amused blonde supplied the answer with a barely concealed chuckle.

"It's a cherry silly!" Beaming in sudden understanding, Axel was quick to join in with his chortles.

"Like me!" Unable to hold it in any longer, the mirthful teen cracked up laughing as the calmer redhead moved along the shore towards the beaching flat. "I know what they are, but I've never had one." Once near the angled flat, Axel pushed himself up, aided by his broad, sweeping tail, before eagerly motioning for the giggling junior to come over and share his tasty treats. Snickers dying down, Roxas strode over, bracing himself upon finding unsteady footing on the slick flow and sat down cross legged before placing the gaping bag between them. Excited at the intriguing prospect of trying human food, the pining merman reached for an exotic fruit to closely examine it, rolling it over around his palm in fascination. After squeezing it almost to bursting, the enthralled merman gave it a quick sniff before tossing it haphazardly into his mouth and swallowing with an abrupt motion, disturbing the ruffled junior. _I forgot to mention the poisonous pits._

"Don't you chew your food?" Axel gleefully plucked out another, tossing it down and heedlessly swallowing before brightly replying.

"Nope, not at all! You guys just look so silly going om nom nom." To prove his point, the mocking redhead miming exaggerated, cow-like chewing gestures, triggering an unexpected crunch as the shocked merman shattered a pit. _I really should have warned him. _Instead of notifying his perturbed friend to the hidden seed inside though, Roxas found himself voicing a bizarre question.

"Why even bother having teeth at all then?" Showing off sharp, triangular fangs, the smirking redhead had to respond around a muffling cherry.

"So we can bite stuff that's too big for our mouths into smaller bits of course." _Well, that's…logical I guess._

"You don't miss tasting the food though?"

"Oh, we taste just fine." Taking a break from his usual gulping, Axel took a moment to suck thoughtfully on one of the plump fruits. "It's pretty sour." His assessment struck the surprised blonde as strange, for he perceived the cherries to be overly sweet. _I guess merpeople have a different sense of taste, I'd like to buy him some sour candy and see what he has to say about those._

"No actually, I think you just have whacked out taste buds." Shooting him a playful glare, Axel zestfully flicked his powerful tail out of the water, succeeding in lightly splashing the laughing teen as well as the already wet beaching flow. Giggling as he brushed water droplets from golden hair, Roxas pretended to be offended and protest. "Hey! What's the big idea?" After sharing a lighthearted round of content laughter, the elated student shook himself off one last time before reaching for the bag to take a cherry for himself. Upon carelessly nudging the bag in his attempt to retrieve a fruit, Roxas was surprised when the fallen bag immediately slid down the slippery surface. Thinking fast, the nimble merman swiftly shot out a lower fin, effectively halting it's decline, before grabbing the zip-loc and setting it within reaching distance of them both once again. Exhaling shakily in relief, the dazed teen warmly thanked his companion, rattled at the frightening image of dozens of fruits spilling out into the tank's salt water. Axel gently waved off his appreciation to be polite before smiling kindly and inquiring in an interested tone.

"So, did you do anything today?" Humming around a cherry, Roxas absentmindedly shrugged.

"Nothing much, just ate and slept." Disappointed but understanding, the dissatisfied redhead despondently nodded, causing the younger to uncomfortably realize that Axel, who had been trapped in a bare tank for weeks, had probably been hoping for something more thrilling to help alleviate the monotony in his own tedious life. After the beginnings of guilt began to bubble up inside him, the panicked student rushed to describe further. "Well, I went for a walk and saw Riku. He's that grey-haired boy you saw with Naminé. He was with her again today, harassing her like always." Perking up, lime-green eyes shined as the merman laughed in amusement, uncaring that he flashed threatening, razor-sharp fangs in the process.

"Better her than you I suppose." Finishing another cherry, the delighted junior snapped his fingers.

"My thoughts exactly!" Stretching to grab another delicious fruit, the unsteady bag was once more knocked over by the thoughtless teen, who leaned forward to retrieve it as a knee jerk reaction. _Damn! I'm so clumsy, but it's really just this slipper-Holy shit! _The following movement happened so fast that neither of the astounded pair could make heads or tails of it for several moments. Unlike the rough cement, textured to prevent slipping, the beaching flow was built with the exact opposite in mind and when Roxas, attempting to stand, had begun to put weight on his slick, rubber-soled shoes, they instantly slid on the wet plastic, throwing him into the deep tank. Flailing in his panicked frenzy, the terrified teen, blinded by his wallowing sweatshirt, unknowingly propelled himself further away from land. Because the wintry nights were freezing on the island, the practical junior had thought it to be best when he layered on many heavy clothes. Now however, he was realizing that it wasn't as sensible as he had first imagined; his waterlogged sweatshirt weighed him down like chain mail and his soaked sneakers like solid bricks. After his effort of a unrefined dog paddle went in vain, the petrified teen fell into a complete terror as he began to sink and struggled to call out for help. "Ax-oulgush"

When his mouth flooded with stinging salt water, the choking blonde coughed and hacked, his panic escalating as he attempted to rid the burning fluid from his lungs. On shore, the distressed merman was having a dilemma. He knew that his human friend was unable to breathe beneath water and the fact that he was having difficulty swimming made the worried redhead assume that the younger was injured. The only thing holding him back from immediately diving in and rescuing his companion was the boy's hazardous thrashing. Whenever they had touched in the past, all of their movements had been kept deliberate and subdued. The panicked blonde however, having thrown all control and rationality out the window, was now flailing madly, causing Axel to fear for his own wellbeing should he approach. Voice heavy with dread, the cautious merman asked uncertainly, already knowing the answer.

"R-Rox? Roxas, are you okay?" Deaf to his inquiry, the floundering student had come to grasp that his burdensome shoes exhausting his legs were half the problem, so he halted all impulsive actions to go under and remove them, using numb fingers to shuck them off without even bothering with the knotted laces. Upon witnessing the unfortunate human steadily sink beneath the surface, the hysterical merman, fearing the worst, determined that a little pain on his side was more than worth the life of his close friend. "Hold on!"

Seconds after his command, Axel propelled himself into the warm pool, only to find his senses distorted at once, for the frightened junior had resumed his desperate splashing and was churning the sea water into foam. Concentrating hard on their positions, the guarded merman warily neared the struggling human from below, pausing to get his bearings before making his way slowly up. Upon feeling one of his powerful kicks connect with something solid, Roxas froze in shock, triggering the struck merman to take advantage of the temporary stillness and grab the flustered boy by his hips, raising him up out of the water. Filling his lungs with much-needed air, the stupefied blonde gasped upon finding himself face to face with the relieved merman, still watching him carefully. Acting quickly to avoid being submerged yet again, the petrified teen wrapped his arms around his savior's neck and squeezed tight, unmindful of the fresh bruise discoloring the harmed man's shoulder. Oblivious to Axel's pained hiss, the badly shaken student went further and wrapped his trembling legs around the other's thin waist in his panic. The two bobbed leisurely in that precarious position, with the rigid redhead, unnerved from having a human's alien body pressed completely along him, only providing the basic movements needed to stay afloat. Hearing his rescuer's pounding heartbeat provided a soothing effect on the upset blonde and he eventually managed to calm down enough to shakily choke out a muted plea.

"Axel…" The unsettled merman glanced down and was immediately mesmerized by shockingly clear, crystalline irises, still darkened deep with fear. "Can you take me to shore?" He reburied his miserable face into the redhead's bare chest before wrapping up his request. "Please?" The frantic merineitsi nodded vigorously.

"Yes, yes. Of course!" Unsure on how to swim whilst keeping the shivering human above water, Axel swiveled around anxiously, searching for required inspiration and eventually finding it in the form of an otter poster decorating the far enclosure wall. "Here, just-" Sweeping his tail in gradual, extensive strokes, the apprehensive redhead shifted around to get a better hold on the trembling boy. "Hold on." Once they were securely joined together, the timid merman altered the angle of his arcing tail, allowing his upper body to float flat against the surface with Roxas still clinging onto his chest like a scared child. Despite the ungainly arrangement, it only took one gentle thrust of Axel's tail to propel the ill at ease pair back over to the beaching flat where the bag of upturned plump cherries lay long forgotten. Upon returning to the flow, the supportive merman awkwardly tried to assist the dazed teen onto the shore, but Roxas needed no help and promptly scrambled as far away from the intimidating water, menacing despite it's serenity, while still staying on the flat. _He just saved my life! _Several nerve-racking minutes passed in discomfited silence as the nervous redhead allowed the uptight student to catch his breath before finally speaking up hesitantly. "I thought most humans could swim." Still recovering from the frightening order, Roxas could only administer a drained glare when he jadedly huffed.

"I can!" Axel's meager eyebrows shot up high in surprise.

"Then why didn't you?" Sniffling from the fiery salt smoldering in his nose, the dripping teen shivered in the cool night, wrapping his arms around his wobbly knees and pulling them tight as he replied.

"I tried." The baffled merman's expression morphed from perplexed confusion to horrified understanding as the realization dawned on him.

"Are you hurt?" Jade eyes widened in alarm as the worried redhead leaned forward, checking to ensure that his friend was truly safe and sound. Touched deeply by his concern, Roxas smiled faintly and shook his head to dispel all anxieties. Still not fully persuaded, Axel uncertainly bit his lip with a stubborn frown. "Well, that wasn't swimming. Swimming is graceful and smooth." Finding his voice once more, the softly chuckling blonde plucked at the front of the soaked sweatshirt protecting him from the bone chilling breeze.

"It's these clothes, they get heavy when they're wet." Now understanding, the comforted merman sighed in relief, feeling a massive burden evaporate from his shoulders.

"Oh." He then absentmindedly scratched his cheek while he thought before speaking flippantly. "Well then take them off." After the flabbergasted student sputtered in indignation, the sensible redhead was quick to reason. "Clothes are just decoration right?" Brain still jumbled, Roxas struggled to form an opposing comeback.

"Well…I guess." Pleased with the other's apparent compliancy, Axel merrily grinned.

"Now then, there's no humans to impress here and I sure don't care, so take it off!" _Fuck, I feel like a cheap stripper!_ The realistic teen had to grudgingly admit that his friend had a valid point however, so he reluctantly removed his cumbersome, waterlogged sweatshirt and threw it a few feet away to land on the cement with a sickening splat. Gagging at the discarded attire, Axel made a disgusted face and shuddered. "Let me just tell you Rox, that whole shedding skin thing is really gross." Taking no notice of his revolted friend or the sudden bitter wind, the strong-minded junior got to work on his wet socks next. The task wasn't an easy one, for the soaked garments stuck to his feet like a second skin and had to be laboriously peeled off, much to the merman's obvious repugnance. The astounded redhead's attitude changed upon seeing what lay inside them however and he pointed accusingly at the strange digits. "I knew it, little fingers!" Awed, Axel drew closer to ogle the extraordinary appendages in morbid fascination. Curbing his snickers, Roxas comically wiggled his toes, causing the appalled merman to reel back with a disgusted sound. "Ugh, that's so creepy!" Scooting closer to the waterline, the mischievous blonde teasingly raised a foot.

"You really think so?" Gaping in repulsion, Axel drew back even farther as he emphatically shouted.

"Yes!" Unable to resist, the amused junior playfully pretended to poke the fearful redhead with his damp foot. "Get it away!" Diving under to flee from the horrid limb, Axel resurfaced on the other side and glared crossly despite a charmed smile spreading across his lips that exposed his true feelings. Knowing that his companion wasn't truly angry, the student grinned and mocked good-naturedly.

"You know I'm not disgusted by your tail." Pearly fangs were boldly displayed as the other cheekily smirked .

"Of course not, how can you be?" Briefly disappearing from sight as he went under, the remarkable redhead then swiftly erupted from the water to launch himself up high, performing a glorious flip before sliding smoothly back without hardly a ripple. _Magnificent_! Fighting hard to avoid revealing just how impressed he really was, the dazzled blonde swallowed down his shocked gasp, opting instead for deadpan sarcasm.

"Ha ha, really funny." Roxas couldn't help but be painfully reminded of the time when he'd joked about Axel replacing the dolphins for the sea show. Now the unfeasible idea seemed almost possible and it scared the rattled teen to his core. After resurfacing, emerald eyes coolly examined the fretting other before he made up his mind and carefully ventured, quiet tone betraying his true emotions on the subject.

"Roxas? Since you took some clothes off, can you swim now?" As all his earlier fears instantly fled his mind, the stunned blonde felt his jaw drop in outrage at the unanticipated inquiry, but refrained from directly shouting a refusal out of fear of offending his close friend. Still undecided, the uneasy blonde spoke doubtfully.

"Well, I _could_." He had his reservations though, and grimly envisioned what would happen should he get caught in the pool. _That would be bad. Very, very bad. _As his mind was on the bleak topic of punishment, he realized with a nasty jolt that the guards would have to notice his wet clothes on his way out, something that wouldn't have happened if he had remained on the audience side like he was supposed to. _I guess I'll just lie and say that "Cherry" splashed me. I think that's believable enough. _His ponderings were interrupted by the incensed merman, who had been talking for a while and became aggravated after being ignored for so long.

"You're not listening to me!" Shaking his head to clear away his pesky uncertainties, Roxas sighed guiltily.

"Sorry Axel." He looked over to see that his impatient friend had retrieved his liquid-filled shoes from the pool floor and was thrusting the footwear towards him insistently. "Oh, thanks." Leaning over to accept them, Roxas took the pair of the redhead's hands and dumped out the excess water with a grimace. _Great, soaked shoes. Just lovely. _In his close-minded opinion, there was nothing worse than when sneakers got dumped into salt water, they always dried out stiff and crusty. _Ewww!_ Still anxiously waiting for an answer, the pouting merman crossed his arms with a scowl.

"You haven't answered my question." Hating to be pressured, the aggravated junior glowered and snapped.

"Hold on, let me think!" Flinching from the other's heated tone, Axel dropped lower into the water and submissively backed off, albeit not without a slight growl. Oblivious to any hard feelings, Roxas returned to his sopping sweatshirt and wrung it out simply due to a hardwired impulse for him to have something to keep himself occupied while he internally debated. _What if Xigbar comes to check on me? There's no way that I'd have enough time to get out, get dressed in _wet_ clothes, and over to the right side before he arrives. On the other hand though…He didn't check on me at all last night and I stayed until morning then! _Feeling torn, the contemplating blonde took a peek at the uncomplaining merman, looking striking in the pool's dazzling lights, hoping to find an answer and felt it straight away, a strong, desperate longing to be with him. Still not about to just dive blindly in without reason, the dubious teen cautiously asked. "Do you _want_ me to swim with you?" The tentative redhead looked down, uncertainly rubbing his neck by the extensive bruise as if afraid of giving a wrong answer.

"Well, I've never seen a human swim before…"

"Why not?" Irritated, Axel's head swiftly snapped up to meet the curious junior's gaze and he crankily huffed.

"Because I was a good person who stayed inside the city limits like I was supposed to!" Grumbling heatedly under his breath, the regretful merman glanced away, his dotted dorsal fin flapping in frustration. "The one time I decide to get close to humans-" Wanted to prevent another depressing spiral as soon as possible, Roxas was quick to cut in with what he hoped Axel would like to hear.

"Alright Ax!" Not fully understanding at first, the surprised redhead blinked at his friend in bewilderment.

"Wait, you mean you'll do it? Really! You'll swim with me?" _Xigbar didn't bother me last night because it wasn't a school night. Since today isn't either, I'm sure it's safe to say that he'll do the same…I hope. _After a moment of contemplation, the unfaltering teen nodded firmly and spoke deliberately, inadvertently refusing to meet the other's gaze as he did.

"Yeah, but not for too long." Sliding forward with extreme care, the distrustful junior approached the edge of the beaching flow to peer down into the clear, glassy water, noting with a challenging gulp that it was deeper than he remembered. After the wary teen showed no sign of entering the pool, the observant merman tenderly asked.

"Are you going to take those other clothes off as well?" _Urk! _The flustered teen started in surprise, before gradually settling to mull over the query. His thin, cotton shirt was lightweight, but would most likely balloon up with air once in the water, embarrassing and hindering him instantaneously. On the other hand, his baggy jeans wouldn't inflate but would weigh him down with it's bulk. _It would be more practical to remove them, but... _He was wearing boxer-briefs underneath and although they were much less revealing than actual boxers, he naturally found himself hesitant to expose even just that much to someone so attractive and still almost a stranger. "Rox?" The call triggered him to glimpse up and Roxas noted with a wince that the forlorn merman seemed depressed and hurt. _He probably thinks that I changed my mind about swimming. _That one glance was all it took for him to reach a decision and he promptly began to undress further, telling himself that there was no backing out of this.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm coming." As he began ridding himself of the flimsy shirt, he reflected upon just how silly it was to worry about such a petty thing like nakedness when around someone who never wore clothes. _Besides, we're not even the same species. The cat sees me naked all the time, it doesn't mean anything._ Once finished stripping, Roxas shivered in the cold night air, clenching his jaw to prevent teeth chattering, and spread the shirt out next to his jacket to dry. _Not that it could in this freezing cold anyway! _Before he could began work on his impeding pants however, the self-conscious teen became acutely aware of the fixated merman's stares smoldering intently at his bare chest. _At least my cat has no opinion though._ Pausing with his hands hovering above the metallic zipper, the embarrassed student fought down an aggressive blush to tensely demand an explanation from the gawking redhead. "Something wrong?" Jade iris remained focused unwaveringly on the supple, pale flesh as if feasting hungrily. _My cat doesn't eye-rape me either!_

"No, not at all. I'm just-" As lime eyes finally slid up to lock with his flustered friend's gaze, Axel shrugged sheepishly. "Surprised." Deeply affronted, the piqued junior removed his hand from where he was about to undo his jeans in order to place it indignantly on a hip as he glowered, speaking in a threatening quality that made it known that one unsuitable word would send him marching out in a huff.

"At what exactly?" Getting the picture and feeling the tangible threat hanging ominously in the air, Axel nervously nibbled on his fingertips in indecision while he strained to think of a fitting phrase to accurately describe what he was feeling.

"You're just…nice. You look nice." Entirely caught off guard by the flattering statement, Roxas sputtered ineptly as the flushed redhead timidly went on. "I was kind of expecting humans to be funny looking or something, but you're actually rather good-looking." This came as the final blow for the overwhelmed teen, bowled over without warning by the polite sweet talk, and he felt as if his rickety, rubber legs might collapse right then and there. He was spared the humiliation upon hearing the hasty merman smartly add an unnecessary comment. "If you had a tail, that is." With the warm moment gone for good, it's only evidence of existence being the rosy flush on the blonde's fair cheeks, the miffed younger haughtily scoffed as he swiftly unzipped his jeans.

"Oh please." Roxas pretended to concentrate hard on his actions as he wriggled out his waterlogged pants to avoid revealing his flaming face to the watchful other. Despite wishing otherwise, the short teen didn't feel nearly as nice as the merman had said, but scrawny and underdeveloped. Not wanting any more chances for jade irises to ogle, the bashful student wasted no time in plunging into the water, which in sharp contrast to the frigid night, was refreshingly warm. What he didn't take into account however, was that the sea-creature's senses were all dulled out of water and him entering the pool only made everything clearer to the sharp-eyed merman. After resurfacing, the capable junior shook himself out like a wet dog to purge himself of bothersome droplets and treaded easily in place, quickly becoming alarmed when the inspecting merman moved swiftly to circle the helpless teen. The powerless blonde felt a piercing stab of fear upon being caught vulnerable outside of his element and at once he recalled all of the chilling horror stories that he'd read claiming that a mermaid's pastime was to seduce and drown men. _No way, he wouldn't!_ Even though he didn't quite have faith in the reassuring words himself, they were proved spot on a minute later when the perceptive redhead stopped in front of him to critique frowningly.

"You call that swimming?" Taken by surprise, the distrustful junior raged, wishing that he didn't need to use his arms so that he could raise them in emphasis. _That's his reason for scaring me shitless? _

"Of course I do!" Feeling the need to demonstrate just how proficient he could be when inspired, Roxas braced himself solidly against the pool wall before swiftly shoving off with his forceful legs to jet towards the other side in a rapid forward crawl. Even though his unaccustomed lungs were heaving as he crossed the sizable tank, much more expansive than it looked, the willful student's pride refused to let him slow even just a bit until his palm finally smacked blindly on the glass divider. With his chest dully burning from the rushed excursion and the sea salt stinging his face, the victorious teen wiped his wet, golden locks away from where they plastered his face to flash a smug look over at his single spectator. Entirely out of breath, the winded junior puffed as he tried to salvage lost air to speak proudly through his severe pants. "How-" He gulped in air harshly. "Was that?" Floating effortlessly near the original side, the bobbing redhead picked delicately at his bottom lip while pretending to be engrossed with the small water ripples in front of him.

"Honestly?" Already knowing where that word would lead and hating it, the huffing blonde glared spitefully as the relaxed merman considerately critiqued. "It was real jerky, not smooth at all. Also, was that as fast as you can go?" Yearning to lie but knowing that it couldn't be proven, Roxas faced away from the other with a scoff and truthfully replied.

"Yeah, that's about it." Easily crossing the lengthy distance with only a minuscule fraction of the strokes utilized by the fatigued blonde, Axel efficiently arrived on the far side to settle near the weary human.

"Are all humans like that?" Blaming his pink tinged cheeks on the strenuous exercise and not their close proximity, the discomforted junior shrugged humbly.

"Some can go faster, but I've been told that I was really good." Bemused lime iris could be clearly read in their judgment that whoever said such false compliments were lying, but the well-mannered redhead bit back any provoking comments he might have thought of to simply nod politely.

"Well that's good. Good for you." Unintentionally sticking out his plump, lower lip, Roxas turned to his tolerant supporter to fume crossly.

"Oh, come on! It's obvious that you don't mean that!" Face reddening in indignation, the flustered merman stiffened, for once becoming taller than his bipedal comrade.

"Well…" Unsure how to properly express his excuse, Axel opened and shut his marked dorsal fin in annoyance. "It's not your fault that you don't have a tail or fins." Directly taking that as an affronting slight against mankind, Roxas brusquely jabbed a disdainful finger into the redhead's sinewy chest and daringly challenged.

"Tails aren't so great!" Snapping at long last, the confronted merman adopted a fearsome glint in lively, viridian eyes.

"Oh really?" Despite seeing the blatant test being thrown at him, the obstinate blonde swelled and refused back down, answering in a mocking manner.

"That's right, but what're you going to do about it?" Thinking of means to wipe the cocky smirk off the heckling junior's face, Axel glanced around the cramped pool in contempt, goaded on by the jeering student. "Gonna to try and prove me wrong?" Finally deciding upon a infallible strategy, the self-assured redhead swaggered and played along, puffing out his thin chest as he rose up above the human to speak condescendingly.

"Weeell, this area's much too small for me to reach even _half_ of my fastest speed, but I'm sure you'll be blown away regardless." He ended his bold declaration with a self-satisfied smirk, delighted at having infuriated the livid younger, and placidly bobbed away from the shore to get started. Scoffing, the furious teen seethed with fury at having been snubbed, beside himself in rage as he watched Axel pause a few feet away to nervously flutter his dorsal fin. _I've seen him swim fast before and I highly doubt that he can do double that, even in open ocean!_ All of the anger was swiftly knocked out of the short-tempered junior however when he met expressive, emerald orbs after the hesitant merman turned around shyly to face him instead of submerging right away. "Grab on." He timidly gestured to his back, where his dorsal fin now lay firmly closed, but even then the thunderstruck blonde couldn't wrap his head around what the redhead was implying.

"What!" Finding it hard to explain while looking at his flabbergasted friend, Axel focused straight ahead in a failed effort to cover up his uneasiness at the situation.

"You know, like you did earlier, but on my back. I won't be able to turn as good without my dorsal fin, but I can still get around." The shocked teen, gaping in disbelief, could detect that his trembling friend was visibly nervous. _Axel letting me touch him is crazy enough, but _grabbing _him? Really! _Nevertheless, he abstained from speaking up or questioning his motives, knowing that the tense merman could easily become flustered and retract the indulgent offer. _Never look a gift horse in the mouth I guess. Whatever that means._ Instead, he gently kicked off of the cement border and clumsily swam the last couple feet until he was close enough to the frightened other for him to clutch his broad shoulders, heedful of the widespread bruise. Flinched at the mellow touch, Axel acted on impulse and glanced over his shoulder for a better look, only to promptly recoil when he found his nose just centimeters away from the human's. "Sorry! You uhh-" He swallowed harshly, and Roxas could feel his racing heartbeat fluttering in sharp contrast with his own languid one. "You might want to use your legs too." _And here I thought asking me to grab him was the craziest thing ever! _The speechless blonde was taken back once more, but couldn't muster up enough level-headedness to argue even if he wanted to and simply complied with the request without question or thought. _He's naked. I'm almost naked. We're pressed against each other. Oh, this is so wrong! _After feeling the human sensitively restrict his waist, the panicky merman felt trapped and seemed to lose his nerve, gulping audibly as if regretting the challenge.

"Axel, are you okay?" Coming quickly back to his senses, the jittery merman nodded and instructed edgily.

"Uh-huh, I'm just fine. Listen, if you need air, then maybe you can just tap me or something." Committing the command to memory, Roxas tightened his hold in understanding, triggering the instinctive redhead to look back once more, this time actually causing them to briefly rub noses. "Sorry again! So, umm…are you ready?" _Considering that I hardly know what to get ready for-_

"Sure!" Roxas really didn't care that he only possessed a vague notion on what was about to come. In his mind, the obscurity only added to his anticipation and made it seem even more thrilling. _I wonder what-_ Before he could finish speculations, the submerged teen found himself jetting underwater at a breakneck speed that he'd never before experienced. Tightening his hold, the clinging blonde squeezed his eyes shut for protection from the stinging salt. With his senses distorted, the thrilled junior could only guess what they were accomplishing, concluding that they must be rapidly circling the floor of the large tank like a shot or else they'd have hit a wall long ago. For a split second, the exhilarated blonde felt Axel's rigid dorsal fin raise to tap against his bare stomach, but the disconcerted merman quickly caught himself and it was promptly retracted. _If he's having trouble turning, I'd hate to hit the wall at this speed! However fast 'this speed' is!_ After just a minute more, a fleeting second from the staggered student's point of view, the redhead slowed considerably and began to ascend yet again. _Over already? _As soon as the surface was shattered by their sudden appearance, the gasping student needily inhaled great quantities of crisp air, not required from the lack of oxygen, but rather to help recover from his shock at the electrifying rollercoaster of a ride. Looking worriedly out of the corner of lime-green eyes, the concerned merman looked up from where he floated level with the water to bite his lip with a wince.

"I'm sorry, was that to long without air?" Releasing his one of his holds, leaving the pale flesh to flush blood-red in his wake, the drained teen shakily wiped his flaxen mop, glued against flat against his scalp, out of sapphire eyes a second time and panted. _Lucky Axel, I wish I had gill filaments that never lose their style!_

"No." Shaking his head, the amazed student repeated himself to comfort his apologetic friend, who was absentmindedly blowing bubbles with half of his face underwater. "No, I could have gone longer without." Craving to go another time for longer, the expectant junior hoped that Axel would see his remark as an open invitation. _Please! _His wish went unfulfilled however as the clever redhead simply looked over with a small, sly smile.

"So, have I convinced you of the superiority of tails or what?" Blown over and still rendered speechless by the unbelievable display of speed, Roxas could only nod in a dazed way that made the haughty merman smirk. "I thought so." Uncomfortable with his position, the redhead then began to rotate, unnecessarily alarming the frightened blonde who rushed to tighten his grasp. Freezing just before the panicked human would be immersed, the immobile merman lightly opened his dorsal fin to rap it against Roxas's chest and knock him out of his stupor. "You can let go now." At Axel's tender prompt, the shell-shocked blonde loosened his hold, allowing the crowded merman to slide smoothly between his arms and finish rolling over. Despite now sitting on Axel's lean chest with one leg dangled over each side, the spacey student's head remained up in the clouds as he replayed their momentary trip over and over in his mind like a broken record that he could never tire of. _We were so fast, that was just amazing!_ Ignorant of the merman's observable uneasiness towards their new arrangement, Roxas continued to dreamily reminisce. _I hope he lets me try that again some day, I'm going to have to go swimming with Axel more often!_ It took the inconsiderate teen several minutes of self-absorption until he finally discerned the redhead's discomfort, and even then it wasn't immediately apparent to him as to why it was.

"What?" Struck dumb by his friend's idiocy, Axel conspicuously gestured to where the weighty blonde lay heavily on top of him.

"Well, this just isn't what I had in mind when I said 'get off'." Blushing redder than the merman's tail, the tomato-faced junior gaped in mortification upon realizing their suggestive postures. _Shit! I'm practically straddling him!_ Taking the student's horrified expression to mean that he had offended his only human buddy, Axel hastily reassured the disgraced boy. "If you don't want to swim then it's fine I guess. I don't mind." His defectively forced smile said otherwise though and Roxas awkwardly fumbled to remove himself.

"No, I'm sorry! Just give me a-" With nothing solid to push off of, the tricky task was almost impossible. Ultimately managing to bring just one unsteady leg up, the unsupported blonde attempted to shove off and accidentally kneed the unlucky redhead brutally in the ribs. "So sorry Axel!" More embarrassed than he'd ever felt before, the shame-faced junior closed cobalt eyes in chagrin as the wheezing merman rubbed the wounded area, undoubtedly going to develop an additional bruise in the near future.

"I-It's okay." Winded but recovering, Axel thickly coughed one last time before feebly grabbing the shifting teen's arms with a weak grin. "You can just lay on top me and I'll get you off." _What? Argh, that sounds _so_ wrong! _Axel's pure intentions were exposed a second later as he headed towards the onshore flat, clearly intending to deposit the shaky teen securely on the beaching flow. _It's more likely that I'm just a dirty pervert though. _The vigilant redhead carefully moved with minute, subdued actions to prevent the wobbly junior from tumbling and in that precise fashion, the unsteady pair arrived safe and sound at the beaching flow. "Here you go." Straight away, the ungainly duo ran into the same problem as earlier, with Roxas attempting to brace himself by leaning on an arm this time. In the blink of an eye, the inept teen lost his grip after leaning too far over and slipped flat against the bubbly merman's solid upper body with a pained grunt. With his ear pressed awkwardly along the redhead's torso, the uneasy blonde could clearly hear Axel's rhythmic heartbeat and felt embarrassing warmth rush to his cheeks upon feeling the other's booming laugh reverberate through his chest cavity. Reluctant to meet his snickering companion's gaze, Roxas eventually looked up warily to see the redhead showing his fangs off in a jovial smile. "You're just like a child!" Assuming that the teasing merman was making a boorish crack about his stunted height, the snubbed teen quickly found his vanished voice.

"What?" After his protest only resulted in the entertained redhead howling harder, the worked up student groaned and buried his glowing face back into Axel's lean chest before griping again, muffled tone stifled. "I'm not that short." Composing himself all over again, the amused merman relaxed to give a toothless grin, leaning his head down so that his chin touched the base of his neck right in front of the disheveled boy.

"Oh, I wasn't making fun of you not being tall." Unmoved, the dubious student growled to show his skepticism, setting off a rushed explanation from Axel. "No really, I just said that because you're holding onto me like one." Bewildered, the baffled junior removed his crimson face from where it had been planted to squint in misunderstanding.

"Huh?" Smiling at how adorable his naïve friend looked when perplexed, the charmed redhead gladly enlightened him.

"When swimming longer distances, infants cling to other's chests." _That won't do! _Not wanting his older companion to consider him a child, the peeved blonde snootily turned up his nose.

"I'm no baby." The impassive merman shrugged nonchalantly to show his acceptance of the honest statement.

"It's not just a baby thing though, it's also a hold of endearment sometimes. Mates sometimes swim chest-to-chest like that, though not in public." There was a momentary beat of silence while Roxas attempted to digest his newfound information. _Is he implying that we're- _Before he could reach his conclusion though, he was startled by a gentle tap on his shoulder from the kind but resolute merman. "But you aren't my child or my mate, so you can get off." _Guess not. _For reasons that he couldn't fathom, the disappointed blonde felt let down upon hearing his devoted companion state the bitter fact so frankly. Suddenly feeling dreadfully lonely, Roxas didn't even make an effort on another exit attempt and simply slackened his hold on the other to twist and effortlessly fall off. He hadn't realized just how frosty the night had become until plunging back into the tepid liquid that surrounded him securely like a soothing, warm blanket. Even though a large part of the thawing student wished to just stay underwater and melt, his rational side, the half craving for his dry, heated bed, won over in the end and he peddled determinedly over to the beaching flat. Watching his futile attempts from nearby, Axel frowned worriedly and restlessly spoke in a muted, fearful voice full of dread. "Are you leaving?" With his upper half holding on to the flow, the irritated teen huffed.

"The pool, yes." _And some help would be nice! _As if eavesdropping on his internal sarcasm, the reassured merman grabbed a hold of the slim boy's hips to gently aid him onto the smooth flat. Not in a patient enough frame of mind to endure slipping a second time, Roxas swiftly hopped onto the rough cement, shivering violently in the glacial night air. Much to the insecure teen's embarrassment, the soaked, navy blue boxer-briefs that he wore clung to every crease along his body, leaving nothing to the imagination. _Lovely. _The polar cold paled him though and wouldn't permit his cheeks to flush, something the relieved teen, being sure to face away from his friend, was very grateful for. After ambling over to his damp clothes, now chilled from the night air, the aggravated blonde sighed in exasperation and began to tug on the salty garments, hating how the damp cloth stuck awkwardly to his skin. _Well, what did you expect after they soaked in sea water, a nice, freshly-pressed outfit?_ Trembling badly, the hypersensitive, goose-bumped teen figured that his shaking was as much Axel's fault for intently watching him dress as it was the artic wind's for blustering. The offending merman in question was staring only out of nervousness, feeling a forlorn sickness develop in the pit of his stomach like an ulcer. His human friend, whom he cared quite deeply for, had been responding curtly and refusing to meet his eyes after falling back into the water. Also, the terse way that he rushed to put on his clothes seemed so final, as if the aloof boy would turn tail and leave right after, never to return again. Telling himself that humans usually sleep at night, the gloomy redhead hoped that his snappish friend was just tired, even though he had a sinking gut-feeling deep inside that said he had inadvertently offended the grumpy blonde somehow.

"Are you leaving me now Roxas?" _Tempting. _The idea was alluring, not because he was displeased at the merman, but because it was freezing cold out here and nothing appealed more at the moment than a heated house with soft, fluffy beds. In the end however, reflecting upon all of the nice commodities he took for granted only made it clearer to the passionate junior that Axel was always stuck all alone in a bare tank, triggering an influential, desperate longing to remain with his forlorn friend to surface.

"N-No, I can st-stay. " Tremors racked his shaking voice as the numb student spoke wearily, weakened by the crippling cold. Frowning at Roxas's strange behavior, the perplexed merman swam up closely against the tank wall to peer up at the quivering teen in apprehension.

"What's wrong?"

"N-N-Nothing Axel" A sharp, piercing chill raced up the shuddering junior's spine and the fretting redhead leaned over in concern for his benevolent friend, jade eyes filled with fear.

"No, you're moving funny, are you harmed? Did you hit your head?" Much to the merman's growing horror, his closer examination revealed chalk white skin and blue lips. "Your colors are off as well, you look ill!" Distinguishing a hysteric tenor in Axel's voice, Roxas was quick to assure his petrified pal.

"It-t-t's just-t the c-co-cold." Viridian eyes blinked in abrupt understanding.

"Oh." He stared attentively. "Is it bad for you?" After receiving a hesitant shrug, the frowning redhead recalled the disinclined way that the exhausted blonde had worded his reply, 'I can stay', as if it was a troublesome burden he had to endure. Not wanting his gracious friend to suffer out of kindness towards him, Axel persistently shook his head. "If you go home, will it be better then?" Roxas didn't respond, but a reply wasn't needed, the astute merman understood the student's uncomfortable silence without a doubt. He hated to have his friend leave, but hated even more to see him quake so. Knowing what he had to do, the cheerless redhead picked repetitively at his lip as he looked down dejectedly. "You should go home Roxas, I was the one made you swim. You've granted me enough happiness for one night." Despite his dull tone, devoid of all life, Axel wore an undersized, strained smile on his face. Roxas, still trembling from the merciless breeze, shook his head to argue, only to be cut off by the thoughtful redhead. "Will you come again tomorrow?' Knowing when he was beaten, the defeated junior nodded weakly with a grateful smile, making a true, fanged grin spread widely across the merman's exultant face. "Good, I will see you then." Coming to terms that Axel's mind was steadfastly made up, the shivering blonde walked to the waterline and rested his chilled fingers atop of the other's to say a proper good-bye. Like always, the merman's dependable warmth never failed to surprise and delight him. Likewise, the flinching merman seemed appalled at how cold the shuddering student's digits had gotten. "You're fingers are frozen!" Roxas couldn't help but laugh at the endearing redhead's childlike innocence.

"N-No, they aren't." He then shot the other a sincere smile full of earnestness and affection. "Th-Th-Thank you Axel. I'm s-sorry that I was-s-sn't able to spend much t-t-time with you t-tonight, but I'll stay all night with you again t-t-tomorrow." Enveloping the blonde's cool fingers within his own heated one's to make a toasty cocoon, Axel grinned considerately.

"Thank you Roxas, you're a great friend." _Friend! _In the short time that they'd known each other, Axel had offhandedly called Roxas a lot of things: little, yellow, human, boy, child, and male to name a just few. However, the meaningful word 'friend' carried a lot of weight and remained unspoken until now despite both of them wholly believing it to be the utmost truth. Upon hearing the significant word, the moved blonde completely forgot all about his chills and quivering, feeling nothing but the prevailing swell of warmth inside his chest. He was ruthlessly jerked back to reality when the gentle merman tenderly touched a soft finger to his trembling lips. Instinctively recoiling at the unanticipated action, the shocked junior immediately pull back with an affronted look, only to be promptly struck with agonizing regret upon seeing the wounded look on his close friend's face as he explained himself. "Your lips are blue."

"Oh, thanks." The guilt-ridden student felt as if he should be apologizing for cringing earlier, but was unsure on how to do so properly. Fortunately for him, the improved merman didn't seem to mind at all and beamed brightly up at the concerned blonde as he stood to leave.

"Bye Roxas, I hope that you get better soon." _Thank God he's so forgiving…I haven't even left yet and I already miss him!_ Smiling optimistically back at his kindhearted friend, the euphoric blonde pledged to return as soon as possible before shutting off the lights and collecting his zip-loc bag, still regrettably half-full, to lock up excitedly. Before departing, they shared a final farewell and the blissful junior, still trembling like an aspen leaf from the unforgiving weather, eventually left in high spirits.

Several minutes after Roxas left, Axel still remained rooted to the exact spot, staring expectantly at the stationary gate to guarantee whether the human would return or not. It was a fruitless habit that he'd found himself hopefully doing each time after his cherished friend left, feeling the painful pang of uncertainty for when they would meet again even now. The disillusioned redhead grimly understood that many of the human's nighttime visits, be it his favorite blonde or otherwise, were against the regulations at the institute and that they risked a lot to come visit him. Even though he knew that most only did it to ogle him and that some only did it to flaunt him off to others, Axel liked to believe that Roxas snuck in purely out of a sympathetic urge to console him. It certainly seemed convincing when he considered just how intimate they'd gotten in such a short time. The closely attached pair had effectively bonded instantly and Axel felt a peaceful calmness around the student that he couldn't recall ever experiencing before, even around other merineitsi. As nice as it was though, he found the inexplicable sentiment to be strange and unsuitable. When he and the human teen had swam chest to chest, a personal act that he'd only preformed once with one other, he had been disturbed at how freakishly appropriate it felt, as if they were two pieces just meant for one another. It sounded like the precise description of love and attraction that he'd often heard described, but the befuddled redhead couldn't comprehend feeling it with an alien species when he'd never even encountered it with one of his own kind before. Scowling at his badly chosen thoughts, the troubled merman shuddered before giving up hope for his friend's return and diving deep underwater, tittering irately to himself in his native tongue about disgusting interspecies relationships as he did. Once arriving at his favorite corner, the safest one farthest away from human reach, he curled up pitifully on the bottom in what he knew was a vain effort to protect himself against the violating scientists to later come. Steadily pumping water through and over his gills, the merman desperately hoped that he wasn't falling for a human, because to do so would probably mean that he was going insane in captivity. Seizing on his apparent madness, Axel distraughtly used that as a weak excuse for the unexplained surge of emotions he felt when around the likable teen. Still reminiscing, he unpleasantly recalled how wrong the disagreeable words had felt tumbling inelegantly off his tongue when he claimed that Roxas wasn't his mate. Looking back, it seemed to him as if he had only been trying to assure himself with those erroneous words, which had left him feeling more confounded than ever. Upon remembering the human's fleeting look of hurt when hearing it, Axel considered that it probably was safe to say that Roxas felt something too. He really hoped that his hunch was off though, for he was afraid of having to refuse the caring boy. It seemed to Axel that he was having to refuse a lot of men lately and it always brought nothing but bad luck. Feeling the beginnings of merciful sleep take hold, Axel curled up tighter, with his last passing thought being that if only Roxas had a tail, things would be so much different.

XxXxXxXx

Hopelessly addicted and unable to wait any longer, Roxas went to Tako's again the very next night despite knowing that he'd most likely be refused entry by Xigbar, who was already displeased at him for staying up so much as it was. Even though the lack of sleep was beginning to catch up with him, the anxious blonde felt compelled to see his close friend once more, motivated by the icy fear in his heart incessantly warning him of their dwindling time left together. The merman had instantly became an indispensable part of his life and he wondered constantly what he would do with himself when the dreadful day arrived that Axel would be shipped off somewhere else. He wasn't naïve to the facts, he knew that Tako's wouldn't be keeping him forever and that soon it would be out of Xigbar's control whether he could visit or not. With the dread weighing in the pit of his stomach like a solid brick of lead, the frantic junior resolutely decided not to take no for an answer from the fatherly guard. Wanting to make the most of their brief time together, Roxas told himself that he should stay up until morning once more with the lonely redhead in order to make up for leaving early the night before. He caught sight of the night watchman through the thick, glass doors and steeled himself for Xigbar's inevitable monologue on how adequate rest is needed on Sunday nights to prepare for the long school week ahead. _His speech feels longer than the week ever does._ Longing like mad for a pair of earplugs to magically appear before him, the annoyed student found himself caught off-balance when the protective guard came outside stony-faced and shut the main doors behind him. Unruffled despite clearly standing between an obsessed teen and his fixation, the watchman coolly crossed his arms.

"Thoughtcha'd come here t'night Rox, but I can't let ya in." _Don't take no for an answer._ Resisting the childish urge to crossly stomp his foot, Roxas scowled and stood straighter.

"I know it's a school night, but I already finished all my homework and I promise not to stay long." The stubborn blonde knew that Xigbar wasn't likely to check on him even after his lie was exposed, for he still had a job to do and was famous for losing track of the time. "Please Xigbar!" Bemused by the plea, the adamant guard shook his head with a small frown.

"Nope, it's not dat at all. Dere's some scientists workin' out back t'night n' I think they're planning' on stayin'." While the surprised teen blinked at the unforeseen answer, the stern watchman uncrossed his arms to point curtly at the other. "I can't jus' let some boy in. This's supposed tuh be top-secret!" He lowered his arm with a weary sigh before turning around to head back to his post. "I'm 'fraid you'll have to leave." He was halted from returning by Roxas, who quickly grabbed the elder's arm out of pure, desperate instinct.

"Wait!" Shrinking under the man's sudden, caustic glare, the student released his grip to draw back and compose himself before speaking in a calmer tone. "What are they doing to him now?" Xigbar shrugged uncaringly.

"Hell if I know, nobody tells me nothin'!" Without the slightest parting glance, the irate guard spat once on the ground before finally leaving the lost teen to drown helplessly in his worrying speculations and grim assumptions.

XxXxXxXx

The sixth time that he was able to see Axel again didn't come until late Thursday night. Four lengthy days had passed, but to Roxas, who was going out of his mind with worry, it felt like four drawn-out years. He had diligently arrived the two nights after Xigbar had sent him home, but the result was the same each time; the guard always said that scientists were monitoring the merman and he couldn't be seen. After Roxas had shown up the second time, the protective watchman, angry at him for staying up so much and neglecting his personal needs, said that he wouldn't answer the door at all if he came tomorrow. The determined teen took the threat literally and skipped just that day, choosing instead to appear the night after despite being sure that Xigbar had probably intended for him to stay away longer. Tako's sudden concealment of his friend made the concerned blonde ill with thoughts of cruel, painful tests being preformed. _Or maybe he got sick in an insane twist of irony after being so worried about me catching a cold? _The abrupt appearance of a short-tempered guard interrupted his panicked thoughts and the stunned boy quickly found himself ushered inside the building where he'd recently been forbidden with a hassled hand gesture.

"C'mon in you." The watchman then turned tail and strode towards the many winding passages lining the lobby while the shocked junior could only gape in surprise.

"You mean, I can actually see him now?" Despite hoping for the best, Roxas had learned long ago to expect the worse and this new development really threw him for a loop. _Just like that? _Already down the first hallway, Xigbar shouted back apathetically, his voice echoing through the corridors.

"Yeah, the scientists left dis morning but I wanna see dis too!" Jogging in his struggle to keep up with the surprisingly quick old man, the puzzled student voiced the obvious question.

"Why?" Still not looking over, even when the panting teen joined his side, the guard spoke quietly.

"I wanna check sometin' tuh see if it's true 'r not." Each lost in their own suspicions and ponderings, they finished the rest of the journey in an uneasy silence broken only by their soft footsteps. The jingling of the keys as the elder unlocked the enclosure gate sounded deafening in the still night, as did the clicks of the light switches being thrown. Once the pool was illuminated, Roxas could see Axel curled up fitfully along the floor of the tank, jerking in small, erratic movements as if having a nightmare. _Is he sick after all…?_ Noticing his new company for the first time, the shuddering merman gave a start and attempted to rise from the bottom, failing in the act and only resulting in more convulsions. The teen released a horrified gasp after witnessing the redhead's second effort go awry, causing the already-wounded merman to forcefully hit the pool wall head-on and writhe in pain afterwards. Instantly whirling the face the grim watchman, the appalled junior yelled out.

"What the hell's wrong with him!" Visibly disturbed, Xigbar avoided the question by scratching broodingly at his stubble, his steady gaze never leaving the flailing sea-creature. With tightly clenched fists, the outraged blonde swelled in anger and jabbed an accusing finger at the elder. "Well?" Holding up his arms in a surrender gesture, the sulky guard released a sigh before revealing what he knew.

"Alright, don' go bitin' my head off now!" He took a moment to get his facts straight before huffing. "Well, from what I'd 'eard, Ol' Red 'ttacked some brainy bloke trying tuh stick him with a needle. Drug 'im underwatah n' everything."

"What?" Despite acknowledging the merman's power and strength, Axel had always struck the startled teen as a pure pacifist and to imagine him attempting to harm anyone went against what he'd come to believe. Misinterpreting the junior's fear for the redhead's well-being as one for the hapless scientist, Xigbar was quick to speak what he thought were reassuring words.

"Don' worry da poor sucker was saved, but dem idiot scientists tranquilized Ol' Red…" Disapproving, the guard shook his head in disgrace, oblivious to the student's growing dismay. "Dem idiots used the dolphin tranquils without takin' how e'd react intuh the picture at all! Nobody's ever seen a beast like this 'fore." With revolted eyes locked on the shaking merman, taking in the sight of fresh bruises and cuts, Roxas pleaded for the other to continue with his voice just above a whisper.

"What happened?" Xigbar shrugged noncommittally despite his one eye disclosing deeply aggrieved emotions.

"I guess da first shot did nothing', or dey thought it did anyways, so dey gave 'im 'nother and sent 'im into shock."Unable to find his voice for several minutes, the apprehensive blonde could only inquire dreadfully, his cracking voice coated thick with fear.

"Is he okay?" In the ensuing silence, the terrified junior was promptly stricken by a flood of vivid memories that came pouring in against his will; Luxord fretting that Tako's would hurt Axel, Xigbar saying that they'd find a way to mess him up, the lost pounds that the merman had unhealthily shed, the first bruise marring his shoulder - and now this. _I could have prevented everything, he asked me to free him when we first met. No, he _begged_ me!_ Agonizing guilt struck the shameful blonde mercilessly like a ton of bricks, causing him to suffer worse than he could ever remember feeling in his entire life. A miniscule fraction of him recognized deep down inside that very little of this situation could be called his fault, but the notion did nothing to lessen the pangs of self-disgust heaving weighing down his bad conscience. Swallowing harshly, Roxas asked impatiently again. "Xigbar, is he okay or not!" Looking away to hide a passionate expression he rarely wore, the guard cleared his throat.

"Well, dere was some close calls n' dey had tuh monitor 'im for a few days, but e's stable 'nuff now so e'll be fine." Despite his words, 'fine' wasn't a term that could be used to accurately describe the unstable redhead currently banging into the tank walls in his struggle to surface. After beholding another disastrous attempt, this one drawing minute plumes of blood clouding the water, the teen could no longer cope to watch and spun around, painfully fisting handfuls of golden hair.

"He's hurting himself!" As if to contradict, all of the fight suddenly left the forlorn merman and he abandoned his futile efforts, choosing instead to lie lifelessly on the bare bottom of the repressing tank. Observing the other's defeat, Xigbar brightly faced the junior he watched over, expecting to see relief written entirely over his face.

"Dere, see dat! 'e gave up!" To his exasperation however, Roxas hadn't noticed the surrender, for he was still smothered in crushing guilt. If a stranger was to set eyes on him, they might say that he was about to burst into tears at any moment. Appearances were deceiving though and all of the island's inhabitants understood that similar to how Demyx was never impressed, Roxas never cried. Hating to see kids sad in any situation, Xigbar felt duty-bound to enliven the miserable student. "Dere's some good dat came outta dis though!" The man knew to wait for the other to come to him and inquire before continuing, it was the only way to force him out of his shameful shell. After the teen had predictably questioned, Xigbar chuckled at how easy it was. "Well, I'm glad ya asked! Ol' Red's finally started talkin' regularly for da scientists." Now completely awake, all thoughts of blame forgotten, the alert junior demanded.

"You mean like English!" _He never seemed to want to talk to them before._ Maddened at the idiocy, the annoyed watchman threw his arms up in disbelief.

"Of course not!" Roxas blinked as the elder crossed his arms, tapping his foot in frustration. "Geeze, ya just like Lux'rd! Dat kook thinks dat sea-beast can speak but jus' chooses not tuh! Of all da crazy things…" _Unbelievable, huh? _"Nah, Ol' Red's jus' makin' a lotta noise now. Chirps n' yelps n' bays n' da like. He warbles jus' like a bird dat thing." With sapphire irises focused unwaveringly on his amphibious friend's tremors, Roxas reflected back on the beautiful croons Axel had spoken in his native tongue and nodded.

"Yeah, it's real pretty." The guard snorted at the statement, but couldn't make himself disagree. Several minutes passed in peaceful silence as the pair quietly observed the quivering mermen, both wishing for his happiness although one hoped much desperately than the other. Finally, Xigbar clapped the student on his shoulder and said that he should be heading home now.

"'Ol Red's not up fer a show t'night boy." Wanting to help but unable to think of how, the teen nodded grudgingly while the watchman began switching off the lights. Upon perceiving the sudden stimulus change, the trembling redhead stirred once more, seemingly intent on renewing his earlier efforts to surface. Unable to bear the thought of him harming himself further, the distraught junior squeezed his eyes shut and willed emerald orbs to be able to see internal pleadings. _Oh please don't try it Axel, just go back to sleep. Please! _Unfortunately, Axel showed no signs of hearing the blonde's silent plea and to Roxas's dismay, he picked up clumsily flailing from where he left off earlier despite being disoriented and unable to tell up from down. Rooted to the spot in horror, the frozen student allowed himself to be lead away by the troubled guard, with the lasting image of the merman's distressed face burned into his mind. While stumbling between the outside enclosures, the traumatized junior could only muster enough drive to verbalize a simple disgusted sentence, dripping with hate.

"They hurt him." The blunt comment was straight to the point and resolutely spoken, leaving no room for doubt or uncertainty. Treading along side the upset teen, Xigbar nodded his agreement.

"Yeah, dey really did fuck 'im up, Lux'rd's pract'ly in tears da big pansy." As he leaned back to stare up at the canvas tent, he began to idly muse. "Maybe if 'e drinks more watuh tuh flush da drugs outta his system…?" His spoken ponderings fell upon deaf ears for Roxas was still lost in his recent memories and walked on unseeing. "Nah, wait. I don' think 'e even drinks. Dey just kinda absorb it through their skin 'n -" His finishing words were suddenly drowned out by a heartbreaking wail as the merman, having finally reached his goal, tried to communicate with the humans. Upon hearing the chilling cry, the exiting pair spun on their heels as if expecting to find the redhead directly behind them. From the far-enclosure, the insistent yowl came again and the grieving student wet his lips before speaking uncertainly.

"It sounds like he wants us back." Frowning, the guard shook his head adamantly before vehemently turning the junior back around to march towards the doors.

"We ain't going back." The watchman determinedly headed inside the institute, but the spellbound teen lingered behind to listen to the saddening notes. Seemingly given up hope on his last message, Axel's tone noticeably changed to call out another and although Roxas couldn't understand a single word of his native tongue, the message was clear. "I want to go home!" Feeling his heart completely shatter from his interpretation, the blonde realized with a jolt that nothing but misfortune would meet the homesick redhead for as long as he stayed confined. The next time that Tako's employees make a mistake, Axel might not be able to live through it! With that deciding realization, the teen understood that he couldn't allow there to be a next time; he wouldn't let them do this or anything like it again. Mind made up, Roxas vowed to free his close friend and ensure that he got back home safely. _I promise Axel._

_To be continued…_

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**Author's notes: **Will he really though? I guess you'll have to wait and find out! *evil laugh*

**Quiz Time: **What's Roxas's cat's name?

*gets it right* Yay! I was going to name it Pete after the fat cat-guy, but then I decided that not enough people knew that he's really a feline, so the joke wouldn't have the full effect. Speaking of the cat, Roxas's line _The cat sees me naked all the time _suddenly becomes reeaaally creepy when you use it's actual name.

**Factoid: **In the beginning, I thought about having Axel give him a fang that he'd recently lost in exchange for the cherries Rox gives. Axel would say that they lose 1 every 13 months or so and would be surprised to hear that human teeth don't grow back. However, I thought it over and decided that it was too much of a coincidence and that giving somebody a piece of your head is insanely gross. *shudders* -Hayner: Cool shark's tooth necklace. -Rox: Oh no, this is my boyfriend's tooth! Thanks anyways though. (See what I mean?)

SO, WHAT DID YOU THINK, WAS IT WORTH THE WAIT? YES? NO? MAYBE SO? LET ME KNOW! *hugs*


End file.
